6 Months to Live
by hisviks
Summary: Eric/Sookie – AU/AH -When the man who raised Eric to be the expert killer that he is, reveals he has six months left to live nothing seems to matter anymore. The revenge and unanswered questions that have haunted him for over 16 years catapult into acceleration as his last job in Russell's employ throws all his plans off center. – Rated M for language and lemons
1. Chapter 1 - Innocence

**A/N: Thank you for taking the time to read this story. I'm relatively new to this writing business having had a very successful maiden voyage by winning Sephrenia's Writing Challenge with my one shot In Memoriam. It can be found on my profile page along with its companion piece Memento Mori. ****If you'd like to read some of my other work I have uploaded the first chapters of two other stories I have been working on to my own site (hisviks dot wordpress dot com) and will be adding them all here soon. Expect weekly updates on all three from now on. This story will be updated every Wednesday.**

**Please note that I don't own anything pertaining to the universe of SVM and True Blood created by Charlaine Harris and HBO. Any recognisable characters, story lines and/or dialogue belong to them.**

Chapter 1

He had parked his rental car down the hill of Hummingbird Lane at the entrance of the Bon Temps cemetery. It was the most generic car he could rent in a boring shade of grey. It was indistinguishable with local license plates. His 6"4" frame hardly fit but he had not selected the vehicle on comfort. It served its purpose as transportation to the job he was about to execute by order of an L. Krasiki. It was not an easy task to appear indistinguishable at his height but he had perfected it to an art form. Living in the shadows was his mode of survival and tonight like any other night it would expedite his mission.

The old whitewashed boards of the homestead had seen better days, as had the other elements that held together what at best could be described as a ramshackle. Despite the building's dishevelled appearance they had managed to find a buyer evident by the SOLD sign next to the mailbox. The fact that the house had been on the market had eased his reconnaissance of the target's surroundings. Any trespassing would simply be explained as an interest in the property.

Bill Compton had been missing in action, this was of course not a coincidence. There was no such thing as coincidence in his world. The target's fiancé was conveniently called away by the very same L. Krasiki.

He moved past the sold sign into the driveway quietly navigating over the gravel until he reached the soft ground. His large feet would leave a distinguishing print behind. They were anything but an average size and he had, as ever taken this into account. For this night was not simply an opportune interval, it was a carefully selected one. Chance of rain in the early hours of the morning: 100%.

The area was particularly known for its heavy showers, any trace would be absolved before anyone would even think to check in on the target. Even if they would find a trace of his imprints the forensics would discover it to be a standard issue military boot in pristine condition. A boot worn by hundreds of thousands and therefore deemed an utterly useless find.

The most likely person to find her missing would be said fiancé and he was not due to arrive back in 3 days. Perhaps in 2 if her lack of response would alarm him but an automated texting service would be put in place to delay him.

He would leave behind a calling card per instruction of L. Krasiki. Her son would know exactly what it meant. There would be no call to the police, Sookie Stackhouse will simply disappear without a trace. The citizens of Bon Temps would assume she had simply left to Arlington, Virginia. Off to join her fiancé as she had announced mere weeks ago. The fact that she did not bid anyone goodbye would not come as a shock to anyone.

Her file indicated her brother and she had fallen out over her grandmother's inheritance and any communication between the siblings had been through the mediations of lawyers neither one could afford. Her circle of friends was small and those that would be considered her confidents; a Tara Thornton, Lafayette Reynolds and Samuel Merlotte had met a similar fate as her brother. For all three had a restraining order filed against them. They had unsuccessfully tried to persuade the target that her fiancé, whom she had known a mere 42 days before his proposal of marriage, was a danger to her person.

They were undoubtedly right. It was after all why he was approaching her doorstep with a loaded gun expertly fitted with a suppressor. Her friends had however based their assumptions on their gut instinct and the changes her fiancé had brought upon her since entering her life. Eric Northman was far more knowledgeable of Bill Compton's sordid past and present. He could have easily supplied the necessary evidence had that been his task. Too bad her friends were looking into a Connor Thompson, a fabricated identity that had stalled the scrutiny of a mediocre private investigator based in Monroe.

Frankly Eric didn't give a shit; he was here to do a job. That job was to make Sookie Stackhouse permanently disappear. He would take her out cleanly as per his expertise, hence the loaded gun. He would then drive her away in her car, dispose of her body at a gator farm that was run by an associate of Russell's. He would then drive to Arlington in the vehicle where it would be disposed of. Trey Dawson the local salvage yard operator would be paid an extra $100 to destroy the vehicle with no questions asked. As prearranged his rental would be retrieved by the rental car company the following morning. The keys locked in the glove compartment.

He took another look at the beat up yellow hatchback assessing if he would make it to Arlington without issue. A new set of tires indicated she had prepared the vehicle herself to make the trip. Assuring himself of the knowledge he had already possessed he proceeded.

He tapped the holster of his gun thrice. A nervous habit he had never been able to rescind. His nerves had nothing to do with what he was about to do next. He had killed many without issue from the age of 16. No the nerves that made him mentally assure himself were a remnant of his former life. His life as it was before Russell.

He cursed Russell internally for what he was about to do. For his whole career he had prided himself on not taking out the innocent. Sookie Stackhouse was the embodiment of innocence. Her only crime was getting herself involved with Bill Compton. By all appearances her incrimination had escalated by making him fall in love with her, simply by being herself. As he had studied her photographs in the file he had observed she was the type of innocent you would gladly introduce to your mother. Not that Eric would entertain such a thought for he no longer had a mother. The closest he would come was Talbot and that would be the last person Eric would ever introduce an innocent to.

Under any other circumstances Eric would have refused this job. Other circumstances meant it would be Russell himself who would be standing in his shoes on this eve. Fate had intercepted and Eric needed to get this ticket off the docket so he could proceed with what he had been preparing all of his 16 years as an assassin for. Circumstances had not only messed up his work schedule it had intervened his timeline. A timeline that meant everything to him.

He approached her back porch providing him plenty of cover from any potential onlooker even though he was certain there would be none in this isolated inlet in the dead of night. He had placed protective plastic socks over his shoes before he stepped upon the porch. His leather gloved hands expertly picked away at the flimsy lock which a teenager with a credit card would probably be able to open in a similar amount of time. Entering through the old fashioned kitchen with the oversized porcelain sink he manoeuvred around the carefully labelled boxes into the living room, which was similarly stacked full with moving boxes.

He knew exactly where his destination was and he knew exactly how long it would take him to get there. He would be cleaned up and out to the gator farm in eight minutes. One did not excel at this job without expedience after all. Tonight however his expedience had been interrupted, a first in his longstanding career.

Sookie had always been a light sleeper and since her decision to leave behind her hometown of Bon Temps it had become an even more fruitless attempt than before. The emotional strain of her first real relationship that had awakened the vitriol in her friends and remaining family weighed heavily upon her. She was happy with Connor. For the first time in her life she had found a perspective that led her beyond the bounds of her small-minded community. The price she was paying for it was a steep, it had certainly encroached on her rest. That is why tonight she had succumbed to her physical exhaustion and taken a sleeping pill for the first time in her life. A decision she would never repeat again. It had knocked her out immediately contrary to the packaging's description and she had therefore fallen asleep hours prior to her normal routine.

It was for this reason that Sookie had awoken at three a.m. in a partial haze. She couldn't be certain but she was sure she heard footsteps. She enthusiastically thought it was Connor, here to surprise her and help her move after all. Sookie jumped out of bed, quickly realising she should probably slow down on account of her haziness but her excitement urged her on. Flinging open her bedroom door she screamed as she saw the approaching figure on her landing. He was far too tall and far too blonde to be her fiancé. She screeched running back into her bedroom startling her assailant. At his discovery he lunged towards her only to slide his plastic covered feet over the protective covering the movers had placed on the landing. Falling inelegantly over the stacked boxes with a loud thud.

Sookie ran through her bathroom that opened up into her brother's former bedroom hoping to bypass her attacker. He was still flailing on the floor as she ran down the stairs. Cursing profusely in a language Sookie could not understand. She ran for her life exiting the living room through the front door, which never in her time living there had ever been locked, leaving behind a trail of moving boxes blocking her pursuer's path.

She continued to cry for help once she made it outside in a futile attempt to get away. As remote as the old family homestead was, the only one to hear her screams was the one sent here to kill her who was quickly gaining speed on her. Sookie had seen it in every single Hollywood movie and now she was living it but she was determined to survive. Urging herself to keep running to safety she dashed into the graveyard that she considered her playground throughout her childhood. Before Sookie dared stop she glanced over her shoulder all too aware how close this chase of her was coming to an end.

Despite her advantage in the knowledge of the terrain, her momentary lapse to assess her attacker was ultimately her undoing. She tripped over a tree root landing her on an old grave that had never caught her attention before. Her last thoughts before darkness took her was '_Here lies Connor Thompson Lt. Sg. Confederate Army 1838-1865 what a coincidence….'_

Eric aimed his firearm with expert precision between the doe like eyes staring up at him and pulled the trigger. The whisper of a sound that emerged ended the evening's unexpected struggle as the warm liquid exited her body and dripped off the ancient slab of stone. He counted to thirty seconds and not a single noise escaped.

All Eric could think was '_what a fucking mess.'_


	2. Chapter 2 - Payday

**A/N: Thank you all for the reviews and follows. Hopefully this will answer some of your questions as to what happens next but more will be explained in the next chapter. **

_Eric aimed his firearm with expert precision between the doe like eyes staring up at him and pulled the trigger. The whisper of a sound that emerged ended the evening's unexpected struggle as the warm liquid exited her body and dripped off the ancient slab of stone. He counted to thirty seconds and not a single noise escaped._

_All Eric could think was 'what a fucking mess.' _

Chapter 2

_1 Week earlier_

Eric Northman had been sitting under the cover of the enclosed back porch with book in hand, Kundera's _The Unbearable Lightness of Being, _for far longer than he had planned_. _The cover and spent pages were firmly folded over the spine straining the book to its confines. He sat semi reclined with his long left leg resting on the outdoor coffee table. Across from him sat his 'progeny' Pamela Ravenscroft although she went by her last name's abbreviation, Raven, these days. To him she would always be Pam, Pamela when she was insolent, and he continued to address her as such.

She had her feet tucked under her behind as she simultaneously chewed a piece of gum, smoked a cigarette and played Fruit Ninja on her smartphone. Eric observed what a fucking shame it was to be so talented in multitasking when it was spent on such futile pursuits. He checked his watch observing they had now been wasting thirty-eight minutes waiting upon the marital drama that was apparently unfolding indoors. He returned his attentions back to Tomáš and Tereza hoping that the reason for their required presence would be explained soon.

Domestic disputes were not an unusual occurrence in the Edgington-Angelis household but Eric and Pam could not remember when the tempers had flared this high in a long time. Apparently some sort of standstill had been reached as the back door swung open with an emotionally wrought Talbot heaving in its frame. Pam didn't' even bother to look up at the new presence whilst Eric merely lifted his eyes and brow momentarily from his book. Uncharacteristically Talbot didn't admonish either of them for desecrating his outdoor furniture with their rampant placement of their feet.

"Russell will see you know," Talbot announced trying to regain some semblance of calm as he ushered the two visitors in.

The home was nothing if not a testament to the couple that resided in it. It was flamboyant, lively and stuffed to the brim with antiques and trinkets. They fully lived up to all the clichés expected of a same sex partnership but it did resound of them and their commitment to each other regardless.

On the high backed burgundy sofa sat Russell Edgington in a purple silk brocade morning jacket with black lapels and matching pyjama pants. His coiffed hair contradicted his just out of bed look, as did the late time of day.

"Eric my dear boy have a seat." He motioned for Eric to sit in the club chair nearest him. He patted the seat beside him as Eric was lowering himself to Pam, "Come my little Raven sit beside Papa." His heavy Mississippi accent was present as ever, despite not residing in the state for well over thirty years.

Pam plonked herself down unceremoniously rolling her eyes at him and his familiarity. Russell gave her a stern look and held out his hand in front of her mouth at which she expelled her piece of chewing gum. At the familiar sight Talbot came running in uttering words of disapproval at her lack of decorum in his native Greek whilst carrying in tissues and hand sanitizer. The gum was quickly disposed of as if it were chemical waste and everyone including Eric was subjected to a cleansing with a round of the hand sanitizer serum.

Talbot situated himself at his partner's feet on the plush Oriental rug. His head rested on his knees whilst looking up at him adoringly. Russell's hand swept through his thick dark curls in a rhythmic soothing. His eyes moved between the blues of his 'adopted' children as he steeled himself for the conversation that lay ahead. It was a strange sight to behold, the couple that seemed to be screaming their lungs out mere minutes ago was now the picture of affection.

"I will need you two to take over the remaining jobs that are on the books," he started, receiving a positively annoyed look from his 'son' and a rather indifferent one from his 'daughter'. Eric was never one to enjoy a disrupted routine or order. Pam was always happy to torture or kill shit.

"For how long?" Eric asked trying to calculate and reconfigure the possibilities.

"Six months. Maybe a little more maybe a little less." It was at this point that Talbot started crying profusely. Talbot was known for his high dramatics but even to Pam and Eric's observations this was highly out of character for the Greek. "After that the business is all yours."

"I don't understand," Pam spoke for the first time that evening.

"Talbot and I will be going to Greece and after a while I won't be."

"Won't be what?" Pam asked still confused.

"He won't be at all Pam. He's been given six months to live," Eric explained whilst running several sets of scenarios simultaneously at his assaulted timeline. Russell smiled proudly at Eric, he always had been quick on the uptake. The blunt statement summarising the situation at hand had forced the news to settle amongst all present painfully. Talbot had begun heaving through his tears, pulling away at Russell's heartstrings.

"Puppet don't cry it'll all be alright," he hushed at his beloved partner of many years. His soothing words had the opposite effect as Talbot sprang to his feet and like a caged animal paced back and forth rapidly screaming in a mixture of Greek and English how everything was decidedly not alright.

"How?" Pam asked as a single black tear fell through the heavily made up corner of her eye as she continued to watch the disintegration of her makeshift family.

"The old prostate. I knew the little pleasure button would be my downfall one day," he chuckled which only further fuelled Talbot's outrage.

"There is no treatment possible?" Eric questioned tentatively through the background noise that was Talbot's incoherence.

"It has spread further than they would like. It would extend my existence for a few extra months at best but that wouldn't be a life worth living."

"This is what has Talbot so upset. You are refusing further treatment," Eric ascertained as two fingers circled the right temple of his forehead.

"Always so perceptive my dear boy," Russell smiled with dewy eyes at Eric.

"So this is goodbye?" Pam asked with a tremor-laced voice her tears barely remained contained. Russell grasped her dainty little hands that had caused so much destruction of many in an attempt to calm her nerves.

"I hope you will join us in Greece as soon as all outstanding jobs are finished. But I leave the decision up to you." Pam nodded without hesitance whilst Eric had remained his stoic self.

"We'll see," Eric responded even though he was speaking only for himself.

oOoOoOo

_Present day 3:23 am_

Eric removed his leather gloves after he finished placing the firearm back in its holster. He laid two fingers on her pulse counting to twenty thrice whilst carefully avoiding the mess she had expelled around her. He tapped her cheeks gently.

"Wakey, wakey," he spoke. His face was hovering mere inches from hers. Her chocolate brown eyes flew open locking onto his blue orbs whilst she released another scream that was rubbing her trachea raw and assaulted his eardrums.

"Shhh." He spoke the most menacing command she had ever received in her life shutting her silent immediately albeit not belying the fury that was present in her eyes. Eric really didn't know what to do next; no one had made it to this point alive before. He lifted himself from his crouched position pulling her up with one hand attached to hers. She looked up at his tall form wondering if this was the same man that had chased her out of her home or perhaps that had been his evil twin. His face was strangely kind, he almost seemed _nice_.

Only noticing her wetness now she gazed down at her soiled flannel bottoms wincing at the pungent ammonia smell. This night just kept on getting better.

"Come let's get you cleaned up," he spoke softly. Not entirely sure how to respond to her bipolar assailant she simply nodded and followed him as he held her hand in his. It certainly beat having a gun pointed at her.

Arriving back at the farmhouse he shoved her into the bathroom as he set about disabling the wired phone and removing the battery from her cell phone. Sookie peeled herself out of her urine soaked clothing whilst admonishing herself for her embarrassment to her would be assassin. There were more important things to worry about, like getting out of this situation alive. _Focus Sookie!_

A tentative knock disrupted her thought process. She peered through the door keeping her body hidden from sight.

"I brought you some clean clothes."

"Erm. Thank you," she said somewhat startled.

"Eric."

"Thank you, _Eric," _she reiterated.

"You're welcome, _Sookie," _he smirked at her.

She gulped audibly at hearing him speak her name and quickly shut the door on him. This was apparently not a random act he knew exactly who she was, which meant someone wanted her dead. Somehow she was still alive after all the early morning's events and anything had yet to make sense to her. She took deliverance of her clothes and wondered hopefully if perhaps this was all a figment of her imagination induced by sleeping pills. The cool water beating down on her in the shower confirmed otherwise. She groaned discontentedly with that revelation.

"Hi," she spoke nervously as she reappeared out of the bathroom holding a plastic garbage bag with her soiled clothing. She found him languidly lying on her grandmother's bed seemingly counting a strange sequence of numbers aloud. Upon her reappearance he lifted himself off the bed towards her. He took the bag of soiled clothing from her wordlessly as his other hand latched onto hers again as he proceeded to lead her out of the room.

She noticed that all the boxes that had been knocked over in the struggle had been meticulously returned as if nothing had occurred. The bag she had packed for her moving trip to Arlington stood by the doorway alongside her purse and shoes.

Her eyes landed on a picture of herself with a white rose painted in her hair and a single red tear on her cheek. The film of the photograph was grainy it had obviously been taken of her in an unaware moment. Apparently this man had been stalking her for at least a week. She remembered vaguely when she had worn that particular outfit.

"What is this?" she gestured at the photograph.

"It's a message for Bill."

"Who's Bill?"

"Ah of course. You will know him as Connor." She just looked at him confused but she was too frightened to contradict him.

"Who's the message from?"

"His mother." That was definitely not the answer she was expecting. As far as she knew Connor's parents had died just like hers. She turned to him with a steel resolve staring him down with all her might.

"If this is my friends and brother's idea of scaring me off marrying Connor. Please give them this message: Fuck off!" She spun on her heels in pursuit of her phone to call her beloved fiancé ready to vent regardless of the early hour. Before she managed to get so far Eric had grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her around to face him once again.

"I am not here on the behest of your friends and family," he spoke coolly the threat of him clearly present in his voice. "I will, however, agree with them that your fiancé is bad news."

She huffed at him in exasperation. Sookie had gotten so used to everyone around her disapproving of her relationship. Now even strange assassins were judging her in the middle of the night and he knew absolutely nothing about her.

Eric pulled a manila file folded in half lengthways from his inner jacket pocket and thrust it at her. She looked at it questioningly as she read her name written on it sideways.

As she opened it as the smell of damp leather lingered through it and up her nostrils. It was a smell she had always associated with her long deceased father. She wondered not for the first time what her father would have thought of her engagement as she traced his name as it appeared in her family tree.

"What is this?" her voice came out barely above a whisper.

Eric took the file from her hands again and led her to the large oak dining table that had been worn down by generations of Stackhouses. He placed a picture of her in the middle of the table and assembled the other loose papers and pictures around it in different constellations. When he was done the documents were neatly arranged next to each other. It was almost as if he had used a ruler as a guide.

He pointed to the picture of Connor, "This is Bill Compton. Known to you as Connor Thompson, an alias, not his first and most definitely not his last. This is Lorena Krasiki she is the one that ordered the hit on you. She is Bill's stepmother and rumoured lover."

"What! This is insane! You expect me to buy this drivel?"

"Do what you will with this information. I am merely presenting you the facts. Shall I continue?" She nodded in response curious what other fantastical lies this man had in store for her. Sookie figured as long as he wasn't strangling her to death she'd play along.

"Lorena is a Madam, she runs a brothel under the guise of a members only club, Cherry Wood House." A flicker of recognition ran across her face the colour raised by her earlier ire now shaded pale. "Bill or rather Connor has spoken to you of this?"

"Yes, his place of employment," she spoke carefully.

"Well at least he is creative with the truth. Cherry Wood House has been a brothel since well before the American Revolution run by the Comptons. Correct me if I am wrong but you were a virgin before you met Connor."

"That's absolutely none of your business!" she fumed.

"I will take that as a yes then. You see under the leadership of Lorena Cherry Wood House has become somewhat of a specialty destination. It has traditionally catered to the echelons of society and the prices are steep. The clientele is peculiar and Lorena furnishes that through procurement. This is where Bill, or Connor if you will, comes in. He was sent here to recruit you to work in Cherry Wood House."

Sookie gasped at him, "I would never do that willingly!"

"No woman besides Lorena works in Cherry Wood House willingly. The standard practice is as follows; the virgin," he points at her picture before continuing, "is often the result of a tip off. In your case it was your cousin Hadley Dellahouse she works for this woman Sophie-Anne Leclerq."

Sookie followed his gaze from her cousin's picture next to her brother up to the picture of the red headed woman above Lorena's picture.

"Hadley's alive?" she gasped with the newfound knowledge.

Eric looked into her eyes and saw them filling with hope. "Yes, she is an exotic dancer. Sophie is a fair boss, she is known for her positive reinforcement. She encourages her staff to provide leads so to speak. A successful recruit earns the informant a percentage."

"A percentage of what?"

"The spoils of your maidenhood of course. Are you aware of the concept of grooming?"

"Beyond that of your appearance?" He bobbed his head in acknowledgement. "Yes one is groomed to prepare for a certain position or purpose."

"Exactly. This is Bill's expertise, he inserts himself in the targets life. He severs their social ties." Eric turned over the pictures of Tara, Lafayette. "He creates discord between her and her family and encourages her not to work and let him be the sole provider. He never pressures them for sex, being extremely understanding and the epitome of an old fashioned gentleman. A marriage proposal is not out of the question." Sookie couldn't help but look down at the antique ring that had stood so proudly on her hand till that moment.

The pictures of Sam and Jason met the same fates as those of her friends. Their overturned faces now blank rectangles.

"The purpose is to isolate the victim, tying herself to him as the life vest on the sinking ship that her life has become. He encourages her to follow him back to his hometown of Washington DC where he is urgently needed back as his family business is all of a sudden faltering. He then introduces her to his stepmother."

He moves her picture in between Bill and Lorena's.

"It is here that he reveals his true name, for he is old money and he only hid his identity to protect his family business and to assure himself that your love was for him and not his family wealth. However the financial situation is worse than anticipated. Lorena will confide this into the victim urging her to keep it from Bill. Of course being the good-natured virgin that she is she offers to help however she can. Lorena will of course refuse her initially and praise her future daughter in law and builds up a relationship of confidence."

The picture of Sookie was pushed further towards that of Lorena.

"At some point a situation will occur where a crippling debt will be settled in exchange for a night of passion. Lorena will of course tell you this in secret and admits that she would have undergone the humiliation herself to save her beloved husband's legacy and to sustain it for poor Bill. However her body has been crippled by the treatments for ovarian cancer. This not only renders her unable to satisfy a man carnally it meant she never was able to give her dearly departed husband any children which they so desired. She hugs you and tells you softly that she considers you the daughter she had always hoped to have. In truth Lorena has never spent a day in a hospital, not even when her husband was exhaling his last breaths in one. Now there are two possible outcomes to this conversation."

Her picture was moved so it sat exactly in the middle between Bill and Lorena and elevated till it created a perfect isosceles triangle.

He continued moving her picture to the left in the direction of Lorena. "If the grooming took full effect the virgin will willingly offer to take Lorena's place. The sacrificial lamb will be led to a room with a two-way mirror where Lorena instructs her to wait for her gentleman caller whilst she is sold off to the highest bidder in the room next to her. Now this earns Bill and Lorena the highest price."

"What's the other outcome?" Sookie dared to ask interrupting his long speech.

He moved her picture in the opposite direction placing it by Bill's photograph.

"She doesn't offer and Lorena urges her to tell Bill on her behalf of the dire financial situation. Of course Bill does not encourage her to offer herself. He will play the downtrodden shamed blue blood, which causes a strain in their relationship. If at this point she still does not offer willingly they switch to plan B. A different set of customers is called upon. Men who revel in an unwilling conquest especially a virginal one. This group is smaller and more cautious about their pursuit so the pay out is lower albeit still a high one."

"This can't be true," she breathed uneasily becoming nauseated at the thought alone.

"I'm not finished yet," he spoke to her, appraising if she was still able to listen before he continued. "To recuperate the cost and achieve a similar revenue of the plan A girls the hymen is reattached by a doctor on their pay roll and she is sold on to the next group of bidders for as long as the hymen lasts."

"And after all that?"

"The fate for plan A and plan B girls is the same. In both cases Bill abandons his 'love' obviously tainted by another man. They are left in an unfamiliar city with a broken heart, no money, no job and no life to return to. It isn't long before they return to selling themselves as ladies of the night. Plan A girls might get a friendly recommendation from Lorena. Plan B girls mostly end up working the streets."

"Then what?"

He moved her picture away from Bill back into the centre and flipped it over leaving only the faces of Bill, Lorena, Sophie Anne and Hadley facing upwards.

"Payday," he said gesturing at the remaining faces. "To the victors go the spoils."


	3. Chapter 3 - Truth

**A/N: Sorry for the lack of warning on the stomach churning details on Bill and Lorena's scheme last week. Like I said to one reviewer the sad thing is I didn't just make this up. Here in Europe 'grooming' is a well-known procurement of underage girls. I adjusted the scheme slightly to suit this story line but the practice is very similar. The men who do this are termed as 'loverboys' it's why you'll never see me use the term 'lover' as a pet name in my fics they resonate too closely in my mind. **

_Then what?"_

_He moved her picture away from Bill back into the centre and flipped it over leaving only the faces of Bill, Lorena, Sophie Anne and Hadley facing upwards._

"_Payday," he said gesturing at the remaining faces. "To the victors go the spoils." _

Chapter 3

"This can't be true," Sookie said with tears hot in her eyes before continuing indignantly, "I can't believe you!"

Her tears were convincing in her denial but she knew he was telling her the truth no matter how ugly it was. When her friends and family had told her things of Connor she had recognised them as lies motivated by disapproval. They had been demanding she make choices on their emotions but this man held none for her situation. He had nothing to gain from revealing this and in her sobs she couldn't help but ask why he would.

"If I show you something on my phone to prove it to you do you promise not to call the police?" Eric asked breaking through her continuing sobs. He hated crying women he had yet to see anything good come from them.

She took him in sceptically but nodded nonetheless. He handed her his phone where she looked down at the Google home screen. "What am I looking at?" she asked with an indignant huff.

"Type in William T. Compton." She eyed him warily but did as instructed and gasped at what she saw; the photographs of him with who she could now identify as Lorena Krasiki, Cherry Wood House, the lineage of the Comptons of Carolina.

"This only proofs he lied to me about his name," she returned with a weakness belying her convictions. "If what you have told me is true. As far as I'm concerned that's a very big _if._ How could they possibly get away with it? Why haven't any of these girls reported them to the police?"

Her eyes were wide with plea. She just wanted to hear from him that he was lying even though she knew he wasn't. All she wanted was to hear the words so she could breathe again like a normal member of the human race.

He swiped his fingers over the touch screen till it settled on a photograph of a group of men in front of Cherry Wood House. "These are the men that write, execute and protect the laws that should protect the woman from that abuse. The law does not apply to them and they protect those who facilitate it whether it be by choice or blackmail."

Sookie sank down into the wooden kitchen chair beside her as she recognised a Supreme Court member, the Chief Justice and her own state's Senator. Other faces seemed familiar but she couldn't put a name to them. They were all men of power and their faces sickened her to her core.

"Are you a cop or something? Do you need me to help expose them?" she asked meekly. The thought of being almost married to such a fraud had her willing to do anything to have his evil schemes exposed.

"I am definitely not a cop," he spoke with that smirk that was really beginning to grate on her.

"What are you doing here then?" she sighed out left utterly confused at his willingness.

"For you Sookie are Plan C." He placed her photograph back, face up into the centre where it had originated. "You see you interrupted the system. You made Bill Compton forgo his mission. He fell in love with his charge and his mother was less than pleased. She does not wish to share his affection."

He walked to the fridge where the doctored photo of her was hanging on a magnet. Removing it from the fridge he placed it on top of her other picture. It was identical apart from the rose and blood tear. "_You_ were to be a lesson."

She took the picture in her hands and turned it over to read the inscription that she had glanced when he held between his hands.

_It's true. You're in love. That's so tragic, it's funny._

"You were sent here to kill me," she spoke ever so quietly the situation dawning upon her.

"Yes."

"Hide my body so he would never find it?" A nervous gulp send shivers of fear down her spine as she continued to stare down her would be assassin.

"Yes."

"A gift from his mother?" she asked tapping her index finger on the white rose in the picture.

"Yes."

"My friends and family would assume I left as scheduled to Arlington never to be heard from again. Connor…" She sucked down a breath as she corrected herself to the truth she was finally beginning to accept, "_Bill_ wouldn't involve the police."

"Yes."

"Why am I not dead?" she asked for the first time looking into his eyes without fear or fire.

"Circumstances prevented it," he said with a shrug.

"Are you still going to kill me?"

"No."

"Why not?" she asked twisting away at the ends of her hair.

"A dud."

"A dud?" She was sincerely beginning to question those sleeping pills. This had to be the weirdest conversation she had the memory of having.

"Russell will understand the significance," he supplied though it gave her little to go on.

"Who's Russell?"

"The man who was originally supposed to kill you," he replied whilst starting to neatly stack all the papers and photographs back into the folder. He turned his back to her so he could reattach the doctored photo with a magnet to the fridge.

"You're just the substitute?" she asked incredulously.

"Are you questioning my efficacy?" He was now facing her again and the significant height difference to her seated position had her quite intimidated. It would have been regardless if she had been standing or not.

"What? No!" she poured out in fluster, "I am quite satisfied with your performance since I'm alive and all. I'll be happy to tell Russell you did an excellent job." Her rambling was cut short by his extended index finger landing on her lips and the second shush of the evening. This one was far less threatening in contrast and accompanied by that infuriating smirk.

"Sorry," she mumbled against his digit, which he decided to remove from her mouth at that point. It tickled.

"So what happens next?" she asked after the silence had lasted too long for her comfort. He seemed to have no issue with the endurance of it.

Eric sank down in a kitchen chair across from her where he ran a hand through his slicked back hair.

"I'm not sure," he admitted. Her eyes widened at that admission but she kept her surprise to her ever quiet self.

Several scenarios were running through his head as he tried to calculate the best possible outcome. He looked over the petite blonde in front of him wondering why he even cared. Why had he allowed this pixie to interfere with his timeline? If he had any sense in him he would just snap her neck and be done with it all and proceed as planned.

"Is there a storage facility nearby?" he finally asked after establishing the best development for both of them.

"Off the I-20 on the exit to Monroe," she answered after wracking her brain for a bit. "Why?"

"You will need a place to store the items you can't bear to leave behind."

"Leave behind? I'm not going anywhere," she retorted defiantly. There was only so much she was willing to take from this night time intruder and his promise not to kill her again had fuelled her with more bravado than the situation would otherwise allow.

"Yes you will," Eric said succinctly leaving no room for negotiation. "You need to disappear before either Bill or Lorena find out your little heart is beating as strong as ever."

"Bring it! They have no use for me in their perverted sex club anymore anyway." Her insolence was fuelling the adrenaline through her body making her slightly breathless in the process as her chest heaved in protest.

"You really think Lorena is going to let you live?" he spoke at her as his right eyebrow rose over his forehead. "The dud will only safe you from Russell and I. If my hands don't kill you the next ones will be successful. Your luck won't safe you twice let me assure you of that."

She gulped audibly at the implication and started counting the eggs in her basket. In the process of bidding to his will she was getting a little annoyed with all the dud talk that still left her positively confused.

"How long?" Sookie finally asked. Eric was glad to see she was bargaining if she were compliant to her situation they would be speeding out of Louisiana sooner than he anticipated.

"Six months at minimum, a year would be best," he offered with a more soothing voice than she had encountered from him before. "Bill will move onto his next project. Lorena will be assured things are as they were. Bill doesn't seem to have any ties to the area. You could return here perhaps start fresh. Keep your head down assume a paper identity."

"You will help me with this why?" she asked wondering why the man would flip his assignment in the span of minutes.

"It's in my interest for everyone to assume I performed my job as expected."

She sighed sinking her heavy head in her hands profusely rubbing at her temples.

"Ok," she croaked out.

Eric lifted himself out of his chair and moved out of the kitchen. He hovered over the end table in the front hallway picking up her car keys as she wordlessly followed him out after slipping into her flat white sandals.

Eric had squeezed himself into the small yellow hatchback and was cursing the seats inability to move back any further. He contemplated the rental car but he had strayed too far from the original plan as it was. He could not afford any more deviations.

Sookie tried desperately not to laugh but the situation was so absurd, the adrenaline that had been coursing through her veins finally found a release as she laughed maniacally with tears sprouting from her eyes.

"I'm glad I can amuse you so," he spoke dryly when she had managed to calm down somewhat wiping away her tears. She grabbed onto his hand that rested over the shift stick as he was getting ready to put in to gear.

"I'm sorry. This is just all so insane." A small giggle escaped her lips in lieu of an aftershock. "I'm sorry, I just really needed that."

His hand shifted with the stick the movement forcing her to retract her hovering hand.

"Happy to oblige," he offered with a sideways glance. To her annoyance the smirk was on in full force.

It had been silent in the car for quite a while as they had been travelling down the I-20 at speeds Sookie was unaware her beat up car was capable of. She broke the trance hoping to quench her curious thirst.

"Can you explain the dud for me?"

"A dud is an ammunition round or explosive that fails to fire or detonate, respectively, on time or on command," he answered as if it were the required answer to an oral exam.

"I'm not asking for Wikipedia's definition Eric. I grew up in the South I know far more about firearms than I'm comfortable with." She swore she heard him chuckle although she saw no evidence of it. "I'm asking for the significance of it."

She saw him clench down on his jaw tightly taking an elongated breath through his nose.

"The dud is the reason why you and I are both living and breathing right now."

Sookie kept quiet hoping to coax more out of him.

"When I was thirteen I was roused from my bed in the middle of the night by a masked man. Tie grips bound my arms together as he dumped me with the rest of my family in the family library," Another breath was inhaled audibly before he continued as his eyes never wavered from the midline of the road. "He shot my baby sister first who was hysterically crying at this point. He then proceeded to shoot my mother and father before either had registered what happened.

"I had scurried myself into a corner with all my might but it was a futile attempt. If an assassin wants you dead there is no escape from it. So imagine both our surprises when no bullet protruded from his firearm after pulling the trigger."

"A dud," she spoke knowingly having lived the same situation only hours earlier.

"Russell is a cocky bastard as well as a superstitious one," he continued as she took in the name Russell again. "Cocky because as highly trained of an assassin that he is, he loads his gun with the exact number of hits. He's never missed a mark."

"Except you."

"Except me." He nodded as he continued, "Russell grew up in the superstitious South so he took it as fate that I was to be his successor. He took me under his wing brought me here to the States and I've been under his employ ever since."

"You work for the man that killed your entire family willingly?" Her tone was sharp but the question was soft. He held her sympathy.

"Willingly is a _strong_ word."

"Enlighten me."

He glanced sideways at her once more wondering for the nth time what had overcome him to share this all with her.

"The first years with Russell were tough," he said with a sigh recounting his flailing beginnings. "I tried desperately to escape, to get someone to believe what happened. I quickly found I stood powerless, Russell is as keyed up as the Comptons albeit it in a different arena.

"When I turned fifteen I made a decision. I would gain Russell's trust play the prodigal son. That night I set up my first dossier collecting all the leads I could find in order to find why my family was a target. I have been working on that diligently for well over a decade now. When all the ties find each other I will take out every single person who had anything to do with their deaths saving the final bullet for Russell.

"After my first hit I took the money and bought a silver bullet for the occasion; it's been waiting for Russell ever since."

"Wow," Sookie breathed out taking it all in as she replaced her hand over his again as the speed they were travelling remained constant. She needed to feel that he was real that this wasn't all an imagination a round of sleeping pills had induced.

"Do you believe in the supernatural?" she asked making him wonder how she had leapt onto this topic as a conversation deviator.

"No. I've seen too much shit to know it is all human from here on out." After some contemplation he continued, "I won't defiantly stare down fate in the eyes though. You and I are a testament to that after all." He supplied it with his now customary smirk the offensiveness of it had dissipated with his revealing story of his past.

"I can help, but you have to be open minded," she said with a serious look on her face. Very few had taken her serious in her life and for some reason she needed him to be one of them.

"You really are one of Lorena's Lambs so quick to offer yourself up," he spoke absently.

His comment stung and she pulled her hand from atop his but he pulled it back before she managed to. Her hand was now sandwiched firmly between him and his knee.

"I'm sorry," he said realising the insult he had directed her way. "Please continue."

"I have an ability," she started timidly. "It's hard to explain, but people tell me things. Whether they want to or not."

"So what's the ability?"

"It's just that. Let me ask you a question." He cast another glance to the side in response as he reluctantly let go of her hand to allow him to shift gears as they were leaving the highway on the exit Sookie had indicated.

"Ask away," he offered with the requested open mind.

"How many people have you told your story to?"

"No one," he spoke almost inaudibly.

"Were you looking to unload that story?"

"No."

"So why did you?"

"You asked. I don't know… how does it work? How did you do it?" He looked upon her with wonder as the car had come to a standstill in the parking lot beside the storage lot. She shifted in hear seat as she unfastened the seat belt so she was turned towards him. He mirrored her position after taking in the time. It would be another half an hour before the storage lot would be open for business.

"I'm not really sure it's been like this for as long as I remember. I've gained some control over it my childhood and teenage years were a nightmare." She continued after he asked her why, "When you are the town's keeper of the vault of secrets people stand well to avoid you, I was considered the town freak. Some thought I was telepathic or psychic they quickly glossed over the fact they themselves were the source of knowledge."

"Was my story the worst you ever heard?"

"Not by far." She grabbed back at his hand contemplating that she was fast becoming the poster child for Stockholm syndrome if she continued these needy grasps at physical contact with her assailant/kidnapper/assassin or whatever he was to her. "When I was seven my great uncle confessed to me how he was attracted to little girls, like my cousin Hadley. In great detail he explained what he wished he could to them, to me. He never acted on those urges but that scars you." She had been looking at their joined hands when she finally raised her eyes to his face.

It was the first time she truly took in his face as the sun had started cresting over the horizon. It was a face of an angel marred by years of loss. She recognised it as her own features had sported similar ones whenever she looked upon her own reflection in a mirror.

"Your story is just one of sadness," she said as she felt it as her own. "Yet you've taken control of it, you seek to change the tone. From loss to gain, it's why I will help you find out who wanted your family dead. Not because I'm a martyr but because I want to do the same as you. I refuse to let Bill Compton turn my life into a lost one."

"I apologise for my earlier comment again."

"Don't," she replied holding up her other hand to him. "It doesn't suit you. Once was enough."

He nodded in acquiescence.

"Can I ask how Bill circumvented your truth serum?"

"I never suspected him of ill will. Frankly I didn't want to know about the skeleton's residing in his closet," she explained. It had been a point of contention with her and her friends and brother. She felt her fiancé deserved to keep the same amount from her as any other person. "Like I said I have some control over it now. Anything you tell me from this point onwards will be on your own accord."

"Promise?"

"Promise," she said earnestly. "Seriously Eric I'm really not interested in hearing your teenage exploits of excessive masturbation and fender benders."

He bellowed in laughter at the thought and she joined him easing the tension between them. When the sounds had died down he continued his questioning of her.

"How do you control it?"

"It's vague I know but I turn up the dial I guess. The best description I can relate to is one made by one of Marylin Monroe's former friend. She said she was really shy in real life, Marilyn was more like a secondary extravert persona to Norma Jean. She demonstrated this to her friend on the streets of New York. No one was paying them any mind she just told her friend to just watch. Something changed and all of sudden the entire street saw Marylin and they flocked upon her."

Eric remained looking upon her sceptically. Could she really be this special? Her deduction that she was the first he ever told had been correct. He didn't share anything about his life with anyone not even Pam. He wasn't one to simply open up like that.

"Would you like a demonstration?"

"One that doesn't involve me?"

She nodded in response.

"Sure."


	4. Chapter 4 - Thanks

_Eric remained looking upon her sceptically. Could she really be this special? Her deduction that she was the first he ever told had been correct. He didn't share anything about his life with anyone not even Pam. He wasn't one to simply open up like that._

"_Would you like a demonstration?"_

"_One that doesn't involve me?" _

_She nodded in response. _

"_Sure."_

Chapter 4 - Thanks

They were sitting in a diner across the storage lot finishing up their breakfast; a proud stack of pancakes for her and a breakfast sampler for him. Sookie had now successfully demonstrated her ability on two separate waitresses.

One waitress confided how she had hidden a pregnancy when she was a teenager and upon giving birth to it, she left it behind in an alleyway behind a fast food restaurant. She never even knew the sex. The other waitress confessed her suspicions that her husband was the Chastity Killer, a serial killer making headlines for killing girls who had disavowed their abstinence pledge.

Eric observed her skill, which was completely undetectable to those without a discerning eye. She was a natural investigator, possessing skills he took years to acquire and some he would never obtain. She lead the conversation without pushing and the confessor was completely unaware. Even her suggestive tone was persuasive enough for the waitress to call upon the police and report on her suspicions despite her reservations.

"You're like a cross between a hypnotiser and a human lie detector," he observed as she was drowning her pancakes in syrup.

"I wouldn't put it like that, maybe a confident," she mumbled shyly as she speared her fork into the fluffy pancake and wiggling it through the lashing of syrup.

"Don't underestimate yourself. Those women couldn't stop themselves from spilling their guts. She," he pointed with his knife to the wife of the possible serial killer, "is calling the cops on the man she loves because you told her to do so. Have you ever tried to cultivate your ability?"

"Nope." She said popping the 'p' as she wielded her hand across the table attempting to rob him of a piece of crispy bacon.

"You have your own," he warned as he intercepted her hijinks at her wrist.

"Pretty boys always get the best bits," she pouted whilst batting her eyelashes.

"Until pretty girls steal it from right under their noses," he responded as he released her wrist. As soon as the piece of bacon disappeared into her mouth he was rewarded with a triumphant smile.

"Do you always order this much?" she asked as she snaked a piece of hash brown from his plate.

"Do you always order too little so you can pillage your tablemate's plate?"

"Maybe," she offered noncommittally. "You should really use some hot sauce." His large hands interrupted her trajectory before she managed to get her insistent ones on the bottle.

"Stay back woman," he warned with a low growl. "That battery acid has no place being near anything edible."

She huffed and sank back into the booth deflated with her arms firmly crossed over her chest. "So you seriously eat like a logger?"

"No I always fast before a mission. Keeps the mind focused," he tapped at his head to emphasise his point. "This is the first thing I've eaten in the past 36 hours."

Her gulp was just shy of being audible as she remembered this was the man who was supposed to kill her. Sookie's stomach felt instantly heavier with that knowledge and it had nothing to do with the giant meal she had just consumed.

"What will they tell Hadley?" she asked with a softer tone.

"They will inform her your recruitment was a misfire." He had yet to hear a more accurate half-truth.

His plate had joined her empty one as he proceeded to pay the bill from his bundle of cash and they headed across the parking lot to the storage rentals. They knocked on the thin metal door of the doublewide trailer that occupied the front yard. The clearly just roused proprietor stared at them with beady eyes. He had obviously indulged in some heavy drinking the night prior as he stood before them in a soiled white wife beater and polyester bell bottoms that hid nothing of his protruding midriff. On his head rested a black coiffed wig set askew. His entire body appeared to be covered in cat hair. Eric refrained from breathing through his nose as the fumes wafted out with the man standing in the doorway.

"Bubba," he introduced himself. Sookie responded with a polite howdedo but Bubba only seemed to be able to produce grunts in response to her niceties. The hangover he was carrying was clearly a painful one.

"We're looking for a storage unit," Eric enquired.

"Sorry bud. We're all filled up."

Eric looked towards Sookie questioningly although she had no idea how she was supposed to remedy the situation this was the only storage place she knew of.

"No pending evictions?" he asked hopefully.

Bubba seemed to be attempting some sort of mental inventory in conjunction with his moving fingers. It was all tediously slow.

"Actually I do," he finally said with some excitement in his eyes. "Follow me." They did as asked accompanying Bubba across the lot to one of the generic storage units. He pulled a key from his overflowing chain and opened up the unit to them. It was filled to the brim with an assortment of boxes and home furnishings.

"Tell ya what," Bubba said to Eric. "Clean this out and I'll give ya the first three months for half price."

"Six," Eric responded evenly sticking out his hand to shake on it. Bubba reluctantly took it as they agreed to the terms.

"Bubba do you have some sort of transport vehicle for rent?"

"Yes, sir. We do, follow me." They trailed the man who vaguely resembled the man from Memphis to a box truck once more. "Will this do?"

Upon Eric's curt nod they proceeded back to the trailer to settle up the formalities.

"I'm paying you a year's rent up front. Any issues with cash?"

"Nope. Cash is king," Bubba smiled gleefully highlighting his missing front tooth.

When all the paperwork was filed Eric and Sookie headed over to their newly acquired unit. Sookie looked upon the daunting amount of boxes that signified someone else's life.

"What are we gonna do with all this stuff Eric?" she asked as the whites of her eyes expanded to take it all in.

"This is a windfall Sookie. Don't you see?"

Sookie was convinced they were clearly looking at two completely different scenarios. Perhaps Eric had watched one too many episode of Storage Wars. At her incredulous look he offered her an explanation, "Switch and bait."

"Switch and bait?"

"We'll switch out these boxes for the ones in your home. Bill will get rid of them thinking they're yours to cover his tracks. We'd be spending the rest of the day at charity shops filling boxes if we didn't stumble upon this."

"That's not really the definition of _bait and switch_."

He shrugged his shoulders, "English is not my first language, it sounds right to me."

"Right," she spoke with a sideways glance. "Bill will recognise this isn't my stuff. I think your plan might be flawed."

"Russell is known for taking souvenirs, he has a flair for the dramatic," Eric explained. "This is something he would do. He's been known to steal an antique or two from a job."

Figuring Eric was better equipped at the secret stuff she simply agreed. They spend the rest of the morning loading and unloading and repeating the process at her former home. Sookie looked around her home one last time as her eyes rested on the photograph attached to the fridge.

"What's the message Eric?"

He stood beside her as he caressed her hair on the photograph with his gloved finger. She noticed he had meticulously sheathed his hands in the gloves whenever he entered her home. "The rose is Lorena's signature. When she wears it in her hair she is signalling to all prospective clients a new bloom is emerging soon. A cherry ripe for the picking."

Her stomach turned at the thought of it, to be traded like a commodity. His finger travelled further south over the picture to the red stained tear.

"This is Russell's calling card. Bill will recognise it and he will not dare seek revenge in fear of the repercussions."

"Russell is that scary?" she asked looking up into his eyes.

"Yes, Russell is that scary," he replied with a small smile.

oOoOoOo

"I feel sweaty and disgusting," Sookie complained as they left the bank that now housed her grandmother's jewellery in a safe deposit box. Thankfully Eric seemed to carry an infinite amount of aliases on his person to deal with all the various administration requirements.

"I'd like to get on the road to make some headway, at least as far as Jackson the farther the better." The narrative he had established for this mission was solid. It had to remain intact in case Bill ever did bother to investigate. They had already agreed to hit the road onwards as soon as they finished up at the bank in Monroe.

"If you're happy residing in my stink I'm fine with it," she announced with an exaggerated wink. Which only invited him to stick his nose in the crook of her neck and sniff audibly.

"Ah, peaches." She yelped in response to his playful assault of her body. Diving back into the passenger seat of her car to release herself from his grasp. He chuckled as he inserted himself in the driver's seat, which only continued when she pointedly lowered her window.

"As long as you don't release the ammonia assault of this morning I think we'll be fine," He retorted starting up the car.

Her face burned up at the memory of her lack of bladder control. Her body doubled over herself in an attempt to hide in the confines of the cramped cab.

Good god her humiliation was complete.

"If it makes you feel better I had the same reaction when it happened to me."

"Really?" She murmured as she dared move her head sideways to look at his face.

"Yes. A little more than that too actually," he spoke his eyes remaining firmly on the road ahead as they pulled out.

She scanned his face for any tell-tale sign of dishonesty. She gasped as she flung her upper body back onto the seat as the realisation hit. "You shit yourself!"

He made a small grunting noise that she took as an acknowledgement of her statement.

"Thank you, that actually does make me feel better," she beamed at him.

oOoOoOo

They actually made it as far as Meridian, Mississippi before Eric pulled over in search for a bed for the night. Sookie had passed out an hour ago and he left her sleeping soundly whilst he frequented the local Wal-Mart. He quickly brought a change of clothes for the next couple of days, some snacks and toiletries. Upon finding a suitable hotel he gently nudged her awake.

"Wakey, wakey," he repeated the words he had spoken to her in the early hours of that morning.

"Not again," she groaned.

"Don't worry you didn't piss yourself this time."

"Not funny," she mumbled with furrowed brows.

"I need you to check in under your name."

"Wasn't I supposed to disappear?" she whined a little as her hands rubbed at her eyes.

"This is a paper trail for your friends and family if they ever decide to investigate. As far as Bill is concerned this is Russell covering his tracks."

Understanding she agreed and went to check in. Taking the plastic key cards she found Eric lingering by the side entrance holding her travel bag. He followed her into their room depositing the bag on the flimsy baggage rack before he collapsed on the armchair by the window. Sookie was looking for a change of clothes when she came across the shopping bags stuffed on top of her clothes. At the sound of the rustling shopping bags and Sookie's confused expression he supplied, "I went shopping."

She nodded wondering when that had happened in the whirlwind of the past day. She placed his bags on the desk as she dug out a comfortable pair of pyjamas and headed into the bathroom.

By the time Eric had finished his routine in the bathroom Sookie had already slipped into the bed nearest the window leaving him to the other bed. She seemed to be fast asleep; he turned out all the light except the one by his nightstand. He sat up against the headboard as he started breaking the spine on his newly purchased paperback, _Naked _by David Sedaris before his lids grew heavy and he fell into a heavy slumber.

It wasn't until a full hour after Eric had fallen asleep that Sookie allowed the tears to flow freely as she ingested them with a quiet sob. On the second night of their travels Eric heard her silent grief. He didn't make a noise or attempt to console her. He may never have suffered a broken heart but he knew loss. He also knew he wanted nothing to do with it ever again.

oOoOoOo

They arrived in Arlington in the early afternoon. Sookie wore a baseball cap by the slim chance she would be recognised. Eric had helped her and her stuff out of the car in a park down the road from Tray Dawson's salvage yard where Pam would pick them up within the hour. Whilst Eric disposed of her car she leafed through the books Eric had bought her, a Swedish language book and a manual on hypnosis and advanced interrogation techniques.

Her concentration escaped her, as she was quite melancholic over the loss of her car. It was her first car and it had taken her many long nights of slinging beer to the punters at Merlotte's to afford it. Eric didn't help matters by his continuous chastising of the 'little yellow rust bucket'. Regardless it had seen her through many stages of her life.

"It's gone." Eric spoke bringing her out of her stupor as he seated himself beside her on the park bench. She detected a hint of glee but she couldn't confirm it.

"Here," he said as he placed a round object into her hands. She looked down and saw it was the gearshift knob of her now deceased car. She fondled it contentedly her eyes set upon the road before them.

"What kind of car does Pam drive?" she asked her gaze unmoved.

"A minivan."

She shifted her head to face him. "Seriously?"

He simply nodded with a straight face. Eric had shared some bits of information about Pam. He was reluctant to share on his 'adoptive' sister. Sookie's questions were often answered with the argument that it was Pam's story to tell. What she did know of Pam was that a minivan would be the least likely car she would expect her to show up in.

"She's a walking contradiction," he shrugged.

It didn't take long for the sky blue minivan to pull up to the curb with said walking contradiction appearing before them. Her hair was styled like a soccer mom with an Alice band the picture of innocence. Her makeup was more like a Goth teen, dark heavy eye makeup and a strong burgundy lip. Her clothing was similarly disjointed; a black velour tracksuit with pink gemstones and little black bows.

Pam raised her eyebrow mimicking her brother at the sight of the blonde in the baseball cap. She simply received a reply of 'later' in return as Eric introduced Sookie to Pam who insisted on being called Raven. Once everyone and everything was piled into the minivan they set off to Bethesda to Eric's apartment.

The apartment was in a word bare. The magnolia coated walls were obviously chosen by the developer as was the all present beige carpet. The kitchen and bathroom were clean but hardly looked lived in. The living room contained a single black leather sofa, a foldout chair and an oversized entertainment module. The bedroom was a bare box spring and a bed light. The closet was filled with identical items; dark jeans, dark shirts and an assortment of similar black leather boots. The only other room was empty except for a flimsy bookcase filled to the brim with paperbacks with tortured spines making the titles almost illegible.

Eric had left with Pam to settle out business affairs leaving Sookie alone to explore. She was quickly finished as she sat on the leather sofa nursing a cup of coffee with the TV on as background noise. It was the first time Sookie had been by herself since discovering the deception by her former fiancé. Her ring had been monumentally tossed into the Mississippi as they had crossed it. It had felt cathartic at the time but now she was confronted with a bare hand that had been so contented to carry the glistening stone.

Allowing herself thirty minutes to wallow and indulge in her personal pity party her face was properly bloated and stained red from the effort. Three firm knocks and the sound of keys moving within a lock caused her to jump from the sofa spilling the cooled coffee over her and the carpet.

"Shit," she muttered under her breath as she looked down the hallway expecting to see Eric but finding Pam.

"Raven. Hi," she said frazzled running into the kitchen pulling out cleaning supplies from underneath the sink.

"Sookie," Pam greeted not exactly sure what she was witnessing until she saw the incriminating dark brown spot by the sofa.

"Relax already," she admonished while Sookie attacked the offending stain with ferocity. Sookie looked up at her completely bewildered at her unimpressed attitude.

"Look," she offered pulling back the sofa revealing a similarly deprecating brown spot, "You're not the first to mar the prince's pristine palace."

"This is your doing?" she gestured at Pam who gave her a shrug. Sookie subsequently spent the next twenty minutes scrubbing at both stains until she was satisfied nothing detectable was left. Pam meanwhile lounged on the sofa amusing herself with another mindless game on her smartphone.

When Eric arrived with pizza boxes in hand it was quite a bizarre sight to come home to: Pam reclining like the Queen of Sheba and a Sookie scrubbing away on all fours.

"She had a whoopsie," Pam explained as if it was the most intelligible clarification in the world. Eric restrained himself from taking another dig at Sookie's bladder, she still seemed a little sensitive about that. Besides Pam was present, this could end up biting him in the ass if it was revealed how well his bladder and bowels held up.

"Finally found someone else to clean up your messes?" he smirked knowingly whilst setting down the pizza on the kitchen table. If it wasn't work Pam was incredibly lazy.

"Sookie any tips on blood stains?" Pam enquired as she watched her gather all the cleaning supplies and giving the floor a satisfied once over.

"Sea salt and ammonia," she quipped.

"Pamela," Eric warned for her to tread carefully.

"It's ok Eric. I know how you two earn your living," Sookie said as she joined them both at the kitchen table.

"You seem awfully accepting," Pam observed as she dug into her first slice of pizza.

"Eric, I…. Thank you." He looked at her confused not sure what exactly she seemed to be thanking him for but before he managed to respond she stopped him. "Just let me get this out, please."

He motioned for her to continue.

"Whether I would be six feet under right now or sitting right here. You saved me Eric," she said looking him in the eye earnestly. "You saved me from a fate worse than death. I don't think 'thank you' will ever be enough but it's all I have to offer right now so thank you."

"Yeah Eric, thanks," Pam supplemented giving him a rare smile.

Sookie looked over at her thoroughly confused. She was fairly certain Eric had informed her on the cliff notes version of events in her absence. Had she really no idea what she was piggyback riding along on?

Understanding her confusion Pam offered with a shrug, "Plan B girl."

"You were in love with Bill too?" Sookie asked incredulously.

"The wet blanket?" she huffed. "No. Lorena lured me in. They have more than one set of playbooks. They have centuries of experience to rely on."

"I'm so sorry for what happened to you," Sookie said as tears were shed from her eyes at the horror Pam had to have experienced. Suddenly being plan C didn't seem as horrendous any more.

"Don't be," Pam returned tossing a napkin Sookie's way to dry her eyes. She took it with a mouthed thank you as she dabbed at her eyes. "It's in the distant past. I'm glad to be sitting where I am."

"Me too," Sookie agreed wondering how distant this past was. Pam was barely nineteen years old.

"So how did you meet Eric?" Sookie asked hoping to delve into a less emotionally charged dinner topic.

"Well he found me rummaging through his dumpster," Pam continued indifferently. "He took me in and after a week he was so annoyed with me he dropped me off at Russell and Talbot's and the rest as they say is history."

Sookie had flinched at the mention of Russell as Pam spoke so warmly of him. To her he was a man who killed infants without a thought and abducted teenage boys. To Pam however, he was a saviour after a long hard life.

"You're an assassin too?" Sookie asked as if it were the most banal question in the world.

"No debt collecting mostly. I make sure the perps bleeds dry till they pay up," she said with a menacing smile.

Sookie wondered if she spoke figuratively or literally. Probably a bit of both she concluded and truthfully she didn't want to know more. The rest of the evening was filled with as mundane of conversations that could be expected between an assassin, an underworld debt collector and a human lie detector.

**A/N: Thanks for reading. For those of you haven't seen it yet I dropped a new story on Sunday, **_**It's Already Gone**_** to relieve some of the wounds season 7 is inflicting.**


	5. Chapter 5 - Shades

"_You're an assassin too?" Sookie asked as if it were the most banal question in the world._

"_No debt collecting mostly. I make sure the perps bleed dry till they pay up," she said with a menacing smile._

_Sookie wondered if she spoke figuratively or literally. Probably a bit of both she concluded and truthfully she didn't want to know more. The rest of the evening was filled with as mundane of conversations that could be expected between an assassin, an underworld debt collector and a human lie detector. _

Chapter 5

"How can you live without curtains?" Sookie complained in her half sleeping state whilst desperately trying to escape the sun's penetrating rays flooding the south-eastern facing room.

"Stop whining," Eric grumbled back at her, as he too was far from fully awake. "There are curtains in the living room."

She simply dug herself further under the covers in response. They had ended up in the same bed together after some heated words the night prior. Eric had gallantly offered to take the sofa whilst she were to take the bed. One look at the sofa and his lengthy frame made her quickly dismiss the suggestion as she announced she would be taking the sofa.

Eric had not taken well to this. Concerned, for he was well aware she was not getting the required hours of sleep, he had pitched a fit and stubbornly refused to move.

After an unsuccessful attempt to remove his giant body that was barricading her intended resting place and tossing out a vertically challenged slur, or two, she had changed tactics.

She asked him a nonsensical question about the bedside light that he needed to be in the room for to answer. He expected her to use the distraction to dart back into the living room and claim the now highly prized sofa. He wasn't worried and indulged her request, he'd lift her in an instant and drop her onto the bed unceremoniously. She'd surprised him by pushing him onto the bed straddling his upper body and telling him to stay put as she plonked herself down next to him and pulled the covers over them both.

She was actually quite happy with their new sleeping arrangements. Being in such close quarters forced her to forego her nightly wallowing and focus on actually sleeping. She woke up far better rested than she had in a long time. Eric was pleased too; despite the gallantry he knew that the sofa would fuck up his back beyond repair plus she smelled like peaches. It was somehow nice.

He lifted the cover in an effort to get her to enjoy the morning sunshine, which resulted in them both trapped under the covers staring each other down after a minor screeching fest.

"Hey," she finally offered as a white flag.

"Hey."

"This is awkward," she stated after the silence lasted too long between them.

"Agreed. Let's get breakfast."

With that they departed from the bed and moved onto the kitchen whilst carefully avoiding looking each other in the eye till they got there.

oOoOoOo

They had settled in a twisted version of domesticity as Sookie served up dinner in the early evening. Sookie had felt like a caged animal all day scrubbing down every surface in the apartment twice as Eric was doing whatever assassins do during the day. She didn't like the situation at all. She had been taking thorough stock of how her life had derailed with the entrance of Connor Thompson or rather Bill Compton. She was still trying to adjust to the true identity of the man she had loved. No matter how sparkling clean Eric's apartment was now, it failed to remove the filth Bill had inflicted on her away. She had considered a third round of cleaning but knowing it had done nothing for her in the shower she had thrown herself into cooking an elaborate meal instead.

Looking back upon the path that she had travelled, she saw the manipulation for what it was now. He preyed on her affections and bound her to him with his hot and cold behaviour. She had wanted to please him and so Sookie had often found herself disregarding the more obstinate parts of her personality. She understood that at some point the game had lost its purpose and he had genuinely come to care for her. She didn't dignify calling it love anymore. She knew better now, the moment he stopped manipulating her Sookie was no longer the girl he met, she was the girl he had cultivated.

She had become a shadow of her former self. A girl who contentedly allowed her boyfriend to convince her that her friends were jealous and petty. They only liked her when she was down so they could feel better about themselves. Sookie now knew it was genuine concern for her. Bill had convinced her Sam's innocent interest in her wellbeing was akin to sexual harassment. Her brother was only interested in robbing her of any part of their shared inheritance. It was Bill who had been robbing her blind.

She had shed quite a few tears over the fact that he had convinced her to sell her family home. A home her ancestors had built and inhabited for generations. Selling the old homestead had settled the last issues of her grandmother's estate and severed her ties with her last remaining known kin.

Even though the eventual sum that she had received from the estate was small, it grated her immensely that she had allowed Bill to park it in his bank account. On top of everything he had been swindling her out of her finances as well.

The Sookie Stackhouse that existed before the intervention of Bill Compton would never have come to those conclusions or made those decisions that had detached her from her former life. She had clung to him like a life vest because he convinced her she needed saving. She relied on the years he had on her to make decisions for the both of them convinced it was in her and their relationship's best interest.

She had wondered if she was not repeating the same mistakes by latching on to Eric so eagerly. Sookie had abated her doubts by the fact that they were not a romantic item. She didn't really know what he was to her and lacking a proper term she had decided on fellow survivors. Eric was somewhat commanding in taking charge of her life. Although she was supposed to feel uncomfortable about that, his rational representation of the facts gave her arguments she couldn't counter. He also always gave her an out.

She had wondered what Bill's changed endgame had become. He had convinced her to come live with him but beyond that she was uncertain. In her case there was no virginity to sell off anymore, she deeply regretted gifting him that.

The moving company would have been picking up the contents of her former home today. She was certain that whatever had laid in her future with Bill Compton it would not have been pretty. Eric had confirmed to her this morning that he had flown out to Louisiana after she failed to arrive at his home as scheduled the day before yesterday. Her cell phone had been permanently out of service for two days now and the texting decoy Eric had set up was most likely detected by Bill by now.

The next couple of days would be crucial. Eric kept close taps on Bill's movements as well as her former friends and family. Sookie wistfully hoped she'd be able to repair those lost relations when she would be able to return to her former life again. The thought of six months seemed insurmountable some times and it wasn't a given. Eric had hinted it could be even longer than that.

Eric had informed her he and Pam needed to finish up some last business before they moved on towards Sweden. He had told Sookie about Russell's failing health and the adjustment to his timeline on their road trip. He had left her his extensive dossier behind that day. She had read through everything thrice, bar the documents in Swedish and his side script in the same language.

Eric had been working on this stealthily for over 16 years but he was yet to find a definitive direction. It was not from his lack of investigative skills, they were excellent. The pieces just refused to come together.

"I need you to come along to a job tonight," he told her as she was chewing down on a piece of potato. She swallowed nervously, she had adopted a 'don't ask, don't tell' attitude to his work life. Sookie decided she should really have added a 'don't see' clause to that too.

"I'm really not that comfortable you know…" she trailed off and lowered her voice to barely a whisper, "all the killing."

He smiled at her as if she were a child with amusement sparkling through his eyes. This only seemed to unnerve her more until he offered an explanation, "It's one of Pam's. She really wants to wrap this up so she can get to Greece and be with Russell and Talbot. I think it will also be a good way to test the range of your skill."

"What do you need me to do?" she asked warily.

"The man in question is proving difficult to crack. We need some intel on him as leverage to ensure he pays his debt."

"Explain to me how this debt collecting business works?" she asked considering her only knowledge of loan sharks and collection came from movies that always ended up with broken knees.

"People who borrow outside the legitimate realm tend to have multiple loans," Eric explained. "Our objective is to make sure that whomever we work for is the top creditor on the list. When the debt is repaid we receive our payment."

"No cure, no pay."

"Yes. It's a delicate balance we need to ensure one is able to pay his debt. Some merely hire us to ascertain just that. We can harm him only so much to gain the knowledge that will assure his compliance," he offered in explanation of the intricacies. "Intelligence is worth far more than broken limbs in these cases."

"What about people who can't pay back?" she asked almost afraid to know the answer.

"Pam does her due diligence. We don't accept any jobs that can't be repaid. These are not low strung addicts in trouble with their bookmakers."

Understanding the gist of it Sookie agreed to help and they soon found them pulling up to an abandoned warehouse in an industrial district. Sookie grasped at her hoodie as she felt the chill travel through her bones inside the damp steel frame building. She followed Eric through the dimly lit hallway where they met Pam waiting outside a door holding a first aid kit.

"Any medical training?" Pam asked of Sookie after the obligatory greetings had passed between them. She hardly recognised the young nineteen year old in a leather clad outfit smeared with blood, the softness always present in her hair was tightly tied to her scalp.

"Not officially but I patched up my brother plenty after some bar brawls."

"Good," Eric started. "Pretend to attend to his wounds whilst you extract as much information as possible."

"Am I looking for anything specific?"

"Anything incriminating and family stuff is always good," Pam drawled out in a bored tone. She was aware of Sookie's ability but without a demonstration she was highly sceptical. She had agreed however as any more physical damage at this point would be counterproductive. Admittedly she was slightly peeved that such a novice would swoop in to usurp her fruitless efforts.

Eric and Pam looked upon Sookie through the two-way mirror as she carefully roused the Native American casino owner, Long Shadow, whilst tending to his wounds.

Pam was impressed soon enough, within minutes Sookie had him spilling his darkest secrets. Not everything was relevant but Eric was pleased to see how she was directing the narrative. The combination of the severity of the wounds and the stories spilling from his mouth forced Sookie to leave the room twice. Once to throw up from the repugnant smell a second time to gather her strength as she sought her balance in the cool night air. It was at this point that Eric suggested they called it a night as they had plenty to work with.

Sookie asked to indulge her one experiment and requested him to come in the room with her.

"Please stop me if necessary," she spoke softly before they entered the interrogation suite.

"Long Shadow," she spoke directing her gaze more forcefully as she watched his eyes oscillate till they stilled almost ominously. Never had she unleashed that on a person before and if it wasn't for Eric's free hand, that she clutched with a strength she was unaware of possessing, she would probably have run screaming at the sight of it. "Who in your retinue has the authorisation to move funds?"

"Ron," he answered in a monotonous tone.

Sookie let out a small gasp at the man's hypnotic state. It was what she had intended to test but she had not expected for it to work so well. It hadn't taken Sookie long after that to 'encourage' Long Shadow to authorise Ron to make the full payment to an untraceable bank account belonging to Eric. As soon as they were out the door Sookie collapsed in Eric's arms as her feet gave way from under her.

He brought her to sit on the threadbare couch in the makeshift office in the warehouse. She was still shivering although it wasn't the cold that was causing the tremors running down her spine at this moment. Downing an oversized cup of takeout coffee Pam had procured she looked around the room shiftily not sure where to rest her gaze. Eric merely observed the jitterbug in front of him. Only when she threatened to hyperventilate did he intervene.

"Shit Eric," she panted after he coaxed her to calm down a little. "I didn't know I was capable of that"

"You did really well tonight," he encouraged which only sent her rising fears through the roof.

"I took control of his mind," she returned shakily as tears started gathering waiting to be shed. "He had no free will. I forced myself on him."

He grabbed her by the chin looking her straight into the eyes.

"No," Eric said sternly. "He brought that situation upon himself. He refused to work with Pam on a payment plan. If he had continued his resistance his fate would be far worse. The man he owed the money to would not have left him or his family unscathed. The wounds you tended to would have been like slaps on a wrist in comparison."

"What if I have been forcing people to do whatever I want all my life?" she whispered as tears flowed down her cheeks. "I'm an awful person."

"Do you really place confidence in that?" He cocked his eyebrow at her disbelievingly. "You think your life would be where it is because everyone catered to your every whim?"

It felt like a low blow considering the state of her life right now but somewhere she recognised he had a point but the insecurities inside her were refusing to relent.

"I don't know Eric," she sobbed softly. "I'm just not comfortable taking away people's choice unknowingly."

"Fine," he sighed with some exasperation. "Try it on me. Force something on me unwillingly without the hypnosis."

"What?" she stammered finding that prospect of certainty even more unnerving than the thought of it.

"Indulge me," he smirked at her encouragingly. She detested the sight of it but she understood his intent, he was helping her once again. There was little she found she could ever offer to repay him his kindness towards her.

"Kiss me," she asked breathlessly seeking escape desperately in the pools of his brilliantly blue eyes.

"No."

With her hypothesis disproven Eric swiftly left the room leaving a confused Sookie behind who sank to tears at his definitive rejection. Under any other circumstances he would have been happy to oblige.

oOoOoOo

Sookie stared at the woman with the chocolate brown hair in the mirror. Pam had aided her in applying it. It would rinse out within a few weeks but it couldn't come soon enough. She missed her blonde hair it had made her feel like she 'fit' with Eric and Pam. To the outside world the three of them would appear like siblings but now she was the outsider again. A black sheep she thought sarcastically. Or at least a dark brown one.

She had to start packing again and she would need to buy some new things. Sookie was barely surviving the winter climate as it was, her Louisiana wardrobe would never stand up to the Arctic colds of Sweden. Eric had given her a large wad of cash, mostly in Euros, as her cut in Long Shadow's payment. She had refused it initially, it had made her feel incredibly dirty in its participation, but after some persistence she finally accepted. She was actually quite glad to be able to possess some cash that she could call her own now.

She had loaded up Pam's minivan, which she had generously loaned to Sookie when she departed to Greece two days ago, with her new purchases. She looked at the digital clock dreading her next stop.

Eric assured her that Dr Ludwig was discreet and would get her lab work returned within 48 hours. He had offered to come along but having to put her sexual history down on paper and relaying it to the doctor would be humiliating enough without his presence.

Despite Dr Ludwig's lack of bedside manner the physical exam and blood draw were not as bad as she expected. To Sookie's relief the doctor wasn't judgemental nor did she express pity for her. She simply acknowledged it was a good decision on her part and set to work methodically.

As Sookie was shrugging out of the hospital gown and changing back into her own clothing she overheard a voice she hadn't heard in quite some time. It was accompanied by another woman's shrill voice that was trying to lift her spirits.

Sookie carefully peered out the door into the waiting area and the visual confirmed her audio recognition. There sat her cousin Hadley, heavily pregnant being soothed by a red headed siren that Sookie recognised as Sophie Anne Leclerq from Eric's file on her.

Panic set in as Sookie realised she couldn't well pounce on her cousin for her betrayal. Aside from the pregnancy she really couldn't afford to be recognised by her. Despite the new hair Sookie didn't dare risk exiting through the waiting area. She still had to settle her payment and a quick departure would be out of the question.

Fifteen minutes had passed and Hadley was still waiting. Sookie had overheard Sophie Anne demanding from the receptionist how long it would take before Dr Ludwig would see them. The staff informed her it would take as long as it took considering she had no appointment. This caused both Sophie Anne and Sookie to curse, be it one was not audible.

The internal service door opened as the nurse walked in surprised to still find Sookie there. When she suggested Sookie was free to leave, Sookie outright refused offering to pay extra just so she wouldn't have to go out into the wait area.

The nurse was used to people getting bad news on their health all the time and they tended to act quite irrationally at those moments. She assumed this is what had happened to Sookie and she managed to coax her into going to the nurse lounge where she settled her down with a cup of herbal tea.

"Is there someone we can call your boyfriend or an emergency contact?" the nurse soothed hoping it was the quickest way of evicting her from the premises.

Sookie cringed as she realised officially Bill/Connor was her only emergency contact. However she did figure Eric would be of help in the situation at hand. His imposing figure was an effective method of camouflage by itself. Handing over Eric's number she waited it out till he showed up with a soft knock on the door.

"I'm here to collect my panicked girlfriend," he smirked at her.

"Are they still out there?"

"Who _lover_?" he asked playfully.

"Hadley and Sophie Anne."

His jovial manner had changed instantly as he reassessed the situation.

"Have they seen you? Recognised you?" she shook her head no in response.

"I didn't dare go out there once I recognised Hadley's voice. It's how I ended up hiding out playing the panicked patient. Here," she handed him a stack of bills and the precise amount in cash, "settle up the bill and check if they're still out there."

It didn't take long for him to return with her year's supply of birth control pills in hand.

"Still there," he announced stretching out his hand to her. "We're leaving through the back door. Come along."

She followed him through the maze of hallways before they exited out onto an alleyway where he instructed her to wait while he pulled the minivan round. It wasn't until they had driven down a few blocks and nothing happened that she dared to breathe again.

"Do you think they saw me?"

"I don't think so," Eric replied. "Sophie Anne approached me but seemed otherwise preoccupied with Hadley."

"You know Sophie Anne?" she enquired as she continued to glance into the rear-view mirrors again to assure herself no one was following them.

"We run in the same circles," he offered in explanation. "It's inevitable that our paths cross now and then."

"How did you explain your presence in a women's clinic?"

"I told her I was considering becoming a woman."

"And she believed you?" she asked incredulously.

"No, but it stopped her asking questions."

"Good cause you'd make an awful looking shemale," she sniggered. "And I wouldn't want you to have to turn to cross dressing to cover my tracks."

"I'll have you know I look very becoming with long hair," he spoke with mock outrage as he flipped his imaginary long locks.

When their laughter had died down she turned serious again. "Thanks for saving me out there again Eric."

"What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't come running at your every beck and call?"

She slapped him on the arm playfully at his teasing. "Will you quit it with that boyfriend title? I had to improvise. Somehow asking the nurse to call my 'would be assassin who didn't kill me but then rescued me out of no obligation of his own' really didn't roll of the tongue that well."

"Well when you put it like that I should really reconsider my business cards. Eric Northman: assassin extraordinaire and fantastical boyfriend."

She couldn't help but laugh at his antics even if they were at her expense. She shook her head admonishingly. "The way you carry on with that boyfriend title, it's like you've never been allowed to wear it," she giggled and a snort may have escaped from her nostrils.

He simply remained silent at the inadvertent truth she had found in that statement.

oOoOoOo

Sookie was staring at the plain white ceiling above her as sleep was continuing to evade her. If she had to guess Hadley was about 8 months pregnant. Which meant she had probably just discovered her condition when she informed Bill Compton about her naïve virginal cousin. It bothered her that Hadley had traded Sookie's life off to pay for her own maternity leave.

After Eric's exposure of her cousin's betrayal she had assumed Hadley had pimped her out for drug money. In the years that Hadley was an active part of Sookie's life she had witnessed her cousin's downward spiral that was substance abuse. She had mourned for her cousin, for one thing was clear, the drugs had eviscerated the person she once knew. Everyone assumed she was dead after extensive searches into her whereabouts came up empty.

The brief glimpse she had of her was unsettling. She seemed healthy, glowing even. Her figure and face had filled out again which wasn't related solely to her pregnancy. Sookie almost didn't dare think that she was in a better place before the conception and she had sold her out stone cold sober.

"Stop fretting," a voice carried through the relative darkness. Eric had yet to invest in curtains much to her annoyance.

"Am I keeping you up? I'll leave," Sookie spoke as she moved the covers to get out of their shared bed.

"No stay," he said sleepily as he pulled her body towards him locking her between his arms.

She moved her body so she was facing his chest, her head resting on his bicep, to keep some distance between them.

"Your cousin?" he asked his eyes still closed.

"Yeah," she acknowledged with a small yawn.

"She's a cunt. Go to sleep."

"Eric!" she gasped.

"Something, something, spade. Sleep." She chuckled at his failure to grasp or memorise common English expressions.

Aware she still wasn't sleeping, he softly sang her a Swedish lullaby that his mormor* used to sing to him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he hoped that the many thousands of goodnights he was wishing upon her would be spent by his side.

As Sookie finally succumbed to sleep she couldn't help but wonder if she shouldn't be more concerned at the comfort she found in the arms of a killer.

**A/N: * mormor = maternal grandmother. The lullaby Eric sings to Sookie is **_**Jag Vet en Dejlig Rosa **_**(I Know a Rose So Fair). YouTube has some very nice renditions of it, Robyn's is the most famous one. Lyrics in English and Swedish below.**

_Original (Swedish)_

_Jag vet en dejlig rosa och vit som liljeblad  
När jag på henne tänker så görs mitt hjärta glad  
Dess stämma ger en hjärtans tröst  
Lik näktergalens blida röst  
Så fager och så ljuv_

Som solen fagert skiner är hon som purpur klar  
Gud låt dig aldrig sörja men alltid vara glad  
Må de få komma samman  
Med hjärtans fröjd och gamman  
Som längta till varann

Var dag går solen neder och dagelig uppgår  
När kommer dagen blider att jag dig skåda får  
I hågen är du jämt mig när  
Farväl, farväl min hjärtans kär  
Mångtusende godnatt

_I know a rose so fair_

_I know a rose so fair and white as lily petals  
When I think of her my heart is filled with joy  
Her voice brings solace to my heart  
Like the soft sound of the nightingale  
So gracious and so sweet_

Like the sun shine gracefully she is as bright as purple  
God, may you never grieve but always be happy  
May they come together  
With joy and rejoicing in their hearts  
Those who miss each other

Each day the sun goes down and every day it rises  
When will that blessed day arrive that I can lay my eyes on you  
In my heart you are always close to me  
Farewell, farewell, my heart's beloved  
Many thousand times good night


	6. Chapter 6 - Waste

_She moved her body so she was facing his chest, her head resting on his bicep, to keep some distance between them._

"_Your cousin?" he asked his eyes still closed._

"_Yeah," she acknowledged with a small yawn._

"_She's a cunt. Go to sleep."_

"_Eric!" she gasped. _

"_Something, something, spade. Sleep." She chuckled at his failure to grasp or memorise common English expressions. _

_Aware she still wasn't sleeping, he softly sang her a Swedish lullaby that his mormor used to sing to him. Somewhere in the back of his mind he hoped that the many thousands of goodnights he was wishing upon her would be spent by his side. _

_As Sookie finally succumbed to sleep she couldn't help but wonder if she shouldn't be more concerned at the comfort she found in the arms of a killer._

Chapter 6 - Waste

Sookie was staring down the black bin liner in a prolonged moment of silence. She hated waste, an ingrained trait from her grandmother's upbringing. Every scrap had a purpose, be it a piece of cloth or a half-eaten biscuit.

The perfectly good fresh produce that was filling up the garbage bag was bristling against her sensibilities. It was however, the untouched breakfast that sat firmly atop it all that had her unnerved and immobile. Glistening with the grease it was cooked in, it sat taunting her with its unspoken message.

The empty plate and cutlery were still firmly clutched in her hands bearing the pressure she couldn't vocalise. She was glad she didn't possess any superhuman strengths otherwise the plate would have come raining down in pieces over the offending items she seemed to be staring down with vehemence. Her foot weighed down heavy on the pedal of the garbage can as she continued to avoid confronting the issue aloud.

"See something you like?" a voice spoke from behind her, stirring her from the stupor forcing her foot to finally release its hold on the pedal.

"I hate waste," she murmured as the lid banged down with the sudden release of her foot.

"Perhaps having a staring contest with it is counterproductive then," Eric remarked dryly.

She looked up at him finally releasing her intense stare on the offending garbage can.

"My mind is elsewhere right now," she offered as some form of explanation and the way in which she spoke made it wholly believable.

He nodded in acknowledgement as he was gathering their luggage out the front door. Sookie started putting the last of the dishes into the dishwasher and started wiping down all the kitchen's surfaces.

Satisfied everything was clean she sought to tackle the garbage can and its contents once more. Removing the liner from its hold she was forced to confront the thing that had been causing her stomach to churn all morning again. As she was gathering the ends and closing the black plastic upon itself she hoped eradicating the sight of said breakfast would alleviate her feelings about it.

It was an attempt in vain of course. Out of sight out of mind didn't apply here. When he had politely refused to eat the breakfast she had cooked for him it wasn't in offence to her hospitality. Sookie had understood the significance of it all too well. He was starting on a fast. He was going out on a job. The chance of another dud saving that person's life were nil.

They were leaving today to Ithaca. She hadn't given the destination much thought when Eric informed her he had some loose ends to tie up there. His lack of understanding common day expressions now gave her more pause to examine them whenever he used them. She didn't want to be caught unaware like this again.

The cars were safely parked in the building's underground garage. Eric had been loading up the familiar rental car he had arranged for his last mission before they would depart for Sweden. Sookie dropped the offending garbage bag in the dumpster, her stomach remained recoiled.

She slipped into the passenger seat as it was now a given Eric would drive. She placed her head against the doorpost as soon as she had buckled herself in and stared out the window ready to take in the passing scenery. Anything to keep her mind off of what was to come. She could deal with departing to another country, there was no doubt in her mind that Eric deserved to know why he and his family were targeted. It was the rest she had trouble digesting.

It wasn't until they had passed Harrisburg that the uncomfortable silence that had existed between them since departing was interrupted.

"Would you like to stop for something to eat?" Eric asked as they passed a road sign announcing a rest stop with an assortment of restaurants at the upcoming exit.

"I rather not eat by myself," she answered to the window causing it to fog up with her warm breath.

"I'll come with you," he offered as his hand reached out to pat her knee. Eric had simply put her absent mind down to her having to deal with another change in her life. It was his only frame of reference for such introvert behaviour in himself.

"No thank you," she spoke softly moving his hand carefully of her leg. Sookie didn't mean to offend him but she had. It caused Eric to push down on the gas pedal hard as they passed the exit sign when he finally came to understand her apathetic behaviour towards him.

Unnerved by the increasing speed of the car she moved her head to look at him for the first time since she entered the car. His jaw was set hard his teeth firmly clenched and his grip on the steering was turning his knuckles blindingly white.

"Eric, please slow down you're scaring me," she all but sobbed out finding it hard to reign in her turbulent emotional state with the added distress.

Rather than slow down he increased his speed further weaving the car through traffic to the next exit. Once off the interstate he pulled over breaking hard and abrupt causing their bodies to dig into the seatbelts that had up to that point been loosely restraining them. They sat silently side by side gazing out onto a green Pennsylvania field, a red barn stood in the distance reminiscent of the ones that graced the countryside of his homeland.

Neither one of them spoke a word as Eric released the hold of his seatbelt and left the car to pace back and forth on the dewy grass and unloaded himself of a substantially audible F-bomb. The string of foreign curse words she now understood to be Swedish followed soon after.

Finding some semblance of calm and control he plonked himself back in the seat resting his forearms and head on the steering wheel. The intermittent stop had done nothing to slow down her heart rate as it audibly echoed through the car. After some more of the heavy silence had ensued he offered, "I'm sorry."

"It was my fault," she responded tentatively. Sookie yearned to touch him and soothe him but she was too scared to further add to the volatility of the situation.

"No it wasn't," he gritted out, "I shouldn't have put you in danger like that."

She really didn't have anything to counter that. He was right he had been reckless with both their lives by driving like a maniac.

"I don't get it," Eric said, his voice was almost deflated, void of intonation. "You _know_ what I do."

"I do know," she returned softly. "There's just a difference between knowingand _knowing."_ Sookie sighed nervously pulling at her sweaty hands in her lap, "Gosh that doesn't even make sense to me."

"No. I get it," he spoke, enunciating each individual word to emphasize his understanding. It was the first time he dared look at her again. He stared at her fumbling hands and he couldn't help but marvel at their innocence in comparison to his own, which held the blood of so many.

"I don't kill innocents," he whispered in the hope that that would make the burden of knowledge bearable. It had for him in all these years.

"What the fuck does that make me?" she fumed in outrage at his admission. "Guilty by association? Fuck you Eric! And fuck what you do."

Her hands flew at the door handle desperate to get out of the car. Desperate to get away from him. She needed to breathe and expel the acid that was building up inside her.

"Please," he pleaded, as he latched onto her closest arm while her feet were already moving out the door but his hold on her circumvented any further movement out of the vehicle.

"Let. Go. Of. Me."

He reluctantly released his hold acknowledging the mistake he made she didn't stay to stand witness to the guilt and sadness that descended into the orbs of his eyes. He stared after her retreating form sprinting from the car for but a moment before he too sprang from the claustrophobic confines of the car in pursuit of her screaming after her, "I would never hurt you!"

His lengthy stride allowed him to catch up with her quickly and only just in time to catch her collapsing form into his arms as grief overtook her physical being. She didn't want to fight, with him or anybody else but this had been growing inside her since he announced he wasn't eating anything that morning.

"I'm sorry," he repeated over and over again holding her in his arms rocking them back and forth.

"It's not enough," she spoke after the worst of her tears had passed.

"It never will be," he answered knowingly.

oOoOoOo

They had departed from the lush fields of the Pennsylvania Dutch country to arrive in Ithaca several hours later. Neither one of them spoke about food again or much else for that matter. They had checked into a hotel where Sookie had discretely slipped away to eat a small meal at the diner across the parking lot. She had chicken soup with crackers unsure of how much she could really stomach at this point despite the growling hunger inside of her.

When she returned to the room she noticed the grass stained jeans lying on the bed and overheard Eric in the bathroom. Next to his jeans lay a manila file reminiscent of the one that carried her name. She traced her fingers over the scripture, Franklin Mott, continuing to graze the pads of her fingers lightly over the thick card material.

She heard the water in the shower die down forcing her to lift her wondering limbs from their exploration. Sookie moved around the bed to the armchair near the window where she sat vacantly staring at the television that was still turned off.

Eric emerged completely dressed in black. Just like the first night she had met him. He placed his feet back into the familiar boots tying the shoelaces into a strangling hold round his ankles. Standing up he put on his leather jacket after folding the file in half lengthways before placing it into the jacket's interior pocket.

"I'll be back in a couple of hours," he spoke as he departed from the hotel room. "Will you be here when I get back?"

The question was spoken with hesitation and the weight of it was palpable in the room. He was giving her another out. Eric had never forced her to come along, instead she had offered him her help instead. Even though she knew what his daily job entailed, she could expose him at any moment. He had enough trust in her not to do just that. Eric wanted to see her when he returned but he would never hold her to him like Russell had with him.

She simply nodded her affirmation in his direction before resuming her stare to the blackened screen. The door fell heavy on the room interjecting it with another stillness, one cultivated by the absence of company.

For once Sookie didn't utilise her solitude for wallowing over Bill. Nor did she seek to cry over her confrontation with Eric that afternoon. There was nothing left to cry about. She came to accept this was what her life was like now. She had chosen to walk down this particular path and now she knew this would not deter her from that.

She spent a few hours practicing with her Swedish language course trying desperately to enunciate the confusing vowels correctly. For the life of her she didn't understand why the Swedes would torture themselves with all these extra letters. Eric had yet to convince her with a compelling argument.

She smiled wistfully at the memory as he was trying to help her shape Sookie's mouth with his oversized paws to get her to pronounce the different letters properly. So far her Southern accent had been impending her proper enunciation of the new language. It had left Eric completely enamoured with her struggling attempts.

Eric did return within a couple of hours as promised and he was carefully pleased to find her there. Sookie was still awake but had been lying in the dark for some time staring at the drawn curtains. Neither of them spoke a word as he got into his own bed. Just like the first time that they had shared a hotel room his bed was on the left whilst hers was on the right. He sighed into the synthetic filling of the pillow mourning the loss of the warm body that used to engulf his senses with the promise of peaches.

oOoOoOo

Sookie woke the next day to an empty room and a note on her bedside table.

_Will be back by midnight. Be ready to leave tomorrow morning. _

_-E._

Unsure of what to do with herself she got showered and dressed and ate breakfast in the room. After getting some advice from the reception staff she took a cab downtown where she walked around the Cornell campus and followed a trail past the waterfalls the town was known for. She lingered in the bookshops inhaling the unique scent only books seem to acquire as they are preserved over so many lifetimes. She found a leather bound copy of _Hedda Gabler_ by Henrik Ibsen she couldn't leave behind.

She convinced herself it was the author's Scandinavian heritage that had made her buy it in preparation for her overseas trip. Sookie denied to herself that it wasn't the theme of an entrapped woman in a gilt cage that had her dispensing with her money with such ease. Nor did she want to contemplate that the story's heroine eventually shoots herself in the head when she realises another's control over her could not be fought.

As the sun seemed to be setting she found herself some dinner in a cosy cafe. Every mouthful she inhaled could not distract her from the churnings that had moved from her stomach to her mind. For the first time in a long time she felt truly alone with herself. She was convinced that feeling so low about herself was had a stranger offering to buy her a drink but she politely declined. It was an exact echo of how she had met Bill, she had been in the same state of mind then and know she understood she had all but offered herself up like prey.

Sookie returned to the hotel room and set about to read her newly acquired book. Engrossed in a world where the protagonist gravitates to the French windows that seem to be beckoning her to venture out whilst forcing her inside at the same time. Momentarily distracted her head turned towards the door when she heard the tell-tale sign of a key card unlocking it.

They regarded one another unsure of what to say, so neither one said a thing. She returned to her book as he disappeared into the bathroom with his sleep attire. When he returned he crouched beside her in the armchair.

"Sookie," he tried whilst seeking out her eyes. They barely lifted up from the words she had been trying to absorb. "I really am sorry."

"For ending Franklin Mott?" she asked with a venom that was difficult to disguise.

"No. For agreeing to kill you." He held his hand up to prevent her from protesting she reluctantly held her tongue to hear him out. "It was against my principles. I don't kill anyone that doesn't deserve to die. You didn't deserve to die and I will do everything in my might to prevent that from happening if you'll let me."

"Who made you the authority on who deserves to die?" she hissed at him as all the anger and hurt from that previous afternoon resurfaced to a roaring boil.

He sighed dejectedly running his hands through his hair. He got up to remove the file from the inner pocket of his jacket.

"I may not believe in a God but it doesn't mean I lack morality. Here," he said placing the file in her hands, "tell me the world isn't better off without him in it."

Sookie looked at the contents of the file sitting in her lap as she nervously thumbed through it. Tears stained her cheeks as she read page after page accounting the horrendous acts, the cruelty and the suffering. She lifted her glistening eyes up to him for the first time latching on to his in earnest.

"Why wasn't he in jail?" she asked as the anger flushed out of her system to be replaced with anguish over the violent acts she was a vicarious witness to.

"He traded information for his freedom."

"The person he ratted out is your client," Sookie deduced as her eyes had difficulty averting themselves from the photographs in front of her despite their horrific content.

Eric nodded his assent. It was the first time she took a good look at him and only then did she notice he was bleeding from a large gash on his forearm.

"You're hurt," she said with shock.

"I don't hurt," he lied. It was a superficial wound and the pain from that wound had long subsided but he had been carrying around a pain inside him no band aid could hope to heal. The wound she had inflicted on him and further allowed to fester with her withholding of her words and familiarity.

"Hush," she spoke with the same warmth her Gran had bestowed on her in identical situations. She traced the outer edges of the wound carefully to which he flinched slightly. "You big faker."

She got out of the chair leaving the words of the book behind for another time and called down to reception for some first aid tools. She wet a soft towel with warm water, which she carefully used to clean the wound. When the supplies arrived at their door she set about to disinfect and bandage him up. As she placed the fastening clip she admired her handiwork and sealed it with a kiss just like her grandmother had always done for her.

"Thank you," Eric said carefully, unsure of what was appropriate to be said between them now.

"You're welcome." He warmed at the sight of her accompanying smile.

"Sleep beside me," Eric requested in a whisper she almost didn't hear.

"Ok," she said with a little more volume than his appeal. She pulled him along to his bed where they lay side by side. Wordlessly and without necessity for discourse the lights of the room were extinguished as they situated themselves in their now familiar sleeping positions.

"I only took the job from Russell to get to Sweden faster," he spoke into the darkness of the room. "I went against my own principles and I shouldn't have done it,"

She turned her body towards his as she whispered back, "Eric if it hadn't been you I would be dead right now. You may not believe in God but I do and if it's his plan for me to be here lying beside you, why bother fighting it at every turn."

"Always fight a cause that's worthy Sookie, even if it's against me," he returned as his lips lingered over her forehead. He planted a soft kiss against her hairline and neither one spoke more that night.

**A/N: A reviewer asked me through a PM conversation why Eric has not just killed Russell already seeing that the verdict is already out on his guilt and if Russell was just doing a job how much did he really know about the assignment. Seeing that perhaps others might wonder that too this is my reasoning: **

**It has already been mentioned that Eric tried to fight Russell and escape his grasp when he was younger and came to understand the reach of his power. This Eric is methodical and highly rational, he knows he has to save Russell till last, because that death won't go without repercussions. Before meeting Sookie, Eric probably wouldn't have cared that his death would come right after Russell's as long as his revenge was completed. There's probably a bit of symbolism in it too, hence a silver bullet, that it ends with the one who started it. **

**In this chapter you also see that Eric investigates every job he has meticulously. It is part of the process that allows him to pull the trigger, Sookie was the only one he couldn't reconcile the action with but his own need for vengeance sidestepped that. **


	7. Chapter 7 - Blue Skies

"_Sleep beside me," Eric requested in a whisper she almost didn't hear. _

"_Ok," she said with a little more volume than his appeal. She pulled him along to his bed where they lay side by side. Wordlessly and without necessity for discourse the lights of the room were extinguished as they situated themselves in their now familiar sleeping positions._

"_I only took the job from Russell to get to Sweden faster," he spoke into the darkness of the room. "I went against my own principles and I shouldn't have done it," _

_She turned her body towards his as she whispered back, "Eric if it hadn't been you I would be dead right now. You may not believe in God but I do and if it's his plan for me to be here lying beside you, why bother fighting it at every turn."_

"_Always fight a cause that's worthy Sookie, even if it's against me," he returned as his lips lingered over her forehead. He planted a soft kiss against her hairline and neither one spoke more that night. _

Chapter 7 – Blue Skies

They left in the early hours of the morning driving up to Toronto to board their flight to Stockholm later that night. They had returned to some semblance of normal after what had transpired between them. The tensions that had caused them to strain had dissipated when they woke again in their familiar spots beside each other.

Eric ate an unusually large breakfast but Sookie didn't comment on it. She had accepted not everything was black and white in the reality she was now living and there would be bitter pills to swallow. It would never alleviate the taste of bile residing in her mouth but she could see it for what it was now. She chose to leave judgement to a higher power.

Bill or rather Hadley had inadvertently thrust her into this world and at the end of the day she was glad for Eric to be her guide in it. As ridiculous as it seemed to her sometimes it felt right despite the many wrongs surrounding her. She still could not accept what Eric did but she could understand it. Sookie also realised Eric had been forced into this world by fate just as she had and he had simply done his best to survive in harsher climates than the arctic cold they were headed towards.

Eric had purposely chosen to depart from Canada. For one the set of fake documents he had procured for Sookie would be checked at border patrol. While he was relatively certain they would not be flagged, he had never encountered a problem with them before, he preferred to be caught aware on familiar territory rather than upon arrival in Europe.

One of her many passports was scanned through the machine and no problems were found. Eric's passport also went through without a hitch. They had some hours to kill before needing to be at the airport and chose to explore the city centre. Toronto was a gulf of grey shrouded in sleet and wet snow. Whilst Sookie had never ventured past Dallas and a singular trip to Washington D.C. before meeting Eric she longed for a bit of sunshine in their wanderlust.

They didn't bother with visiting the CN tower; the weather wouldn't offer much of a view, choosing instead to wander around downtown ending up at the shore of Lake Ontario. The forefront was frozen over and beyond that was an endless mist of grey. The cold was assaulting Sookie's body to unaccustomed shivers and Eric quickly brought her indoors for some warmth.

Deciding she did not want to be kept in the dark any longer she asked what was up next for them. For all she knew Eric would tuck her in some safe house for the next five months.

"What's your plan for Sweden?" she asked.

"My initial plan was to follow up every old lead I had hoping to find something new. A new perspective."

"And now?"

"Your presence has altered it to an extent. Your ability will hopefully help me uncover information previously inaccessible to me. Are you still willing to help me after..." he sighed with a strangled breath, "everything?"

"Yes, no matter what I'll help you." She had become more determined about this than ever. Whatever transpired between the two of them became irrelevant to the fact that she would help him with this because he deserved to know what had happened to his family. There had not been a moment since Eric had entered her life that she wasn't thankful for him exposing her former fiancé's deceit.

"Good," he smiled at her appreciatively.

She sported an equally wide smile as she drank in her giant cup of hot chocolate. When she sat it down a dollop of whipped cream had remained on the tip of her noise. He laughed at the sight of it as she remained unaware of the cause. It only set to make her more indignant as he informed her of his amusement. He beat her to her attempt at removing it by licking it off her nose sucking the offending remains between his lips. She giggled at the feel of it but it had unnerved her immensely as shivers of excitement had run along her spine with the feel of his soft mouth.

Their faces hung in close proximity to each other as she inhaled a nervous breath.

"Please don't," she spoke ever so softly as her eyes fell to the ground scared of what would happen if she continued to look at his hungry gaze.

He pulled away, his face masking the rejection that stung his insides.

"I'm sorry," she spoke but before she was able to finish her sentence he interrupted her with his own.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. I shouldn't have done that."

She shook her head not wanting to accept his apologies. "In another lifetime I would want nothing more," she spoke earnestly looking into his blue orbs. "Right now I know I should hate him for everything he's done, the damage inflicted." A traitorous tear trickled down her cheek with the mention of Bill. "I'm just scared for my heart."

In truth he felt exactly the same when it came to his heart.

oOoOoOo

Sookie was a frazzle of nerves on the plane. Never having flown before and the realisation she would be cooped up in the aircraft for the next seven hours had her clamouring for the tiny bottles of liquor she had been avoiding her entire life. Eric tried to temper down her appetite and found drawing tiny circles with his thumb on the back of her hand proved the most effective. He never let go of her hand during the entire duration of the flight bar a bathroom visit.

Sookie was overly eager to get off the plane in Amsterdam ready to experience Europe for the first time. She had loved looking down upon the green fields systematically portioned up along the many waterways. She was disappointed not to have seen any windmills or tulip fields from the air but was nonetheless enticed by the congregations of town centres and the absolute clarity of the blue sky.

Their layover would last no more than three and a half hours much to Sookie's disappointment a too short period of time to leave the airport and explore. Upon leaving the gate she looked out past the runway at the flatness of it all. Her part of Louisiana had an equally wide terrain but it was so much different here to everything she knew. The sky seemed so close as if one could almost touch the bulbous white clouds shrouding it in the morning sun. She marvelled that something so universal could be so different on account of geographical location.

Eric couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm, whilst they were not in Sweden yet, the European soil beneath his feet always grounded him in a way his adopted homeland never did. He could relax here.

They manoeuvred their way along the motorised walkways to their connecting terminal. Whilst Canada was Sookie's first foray out of the country it was only now that she felt truly abroad. The people, the environment and the smells it was all so vastly different. They passed through passport control without issue and they happily visited the Rijksmuseum's exhibition at the airport.

One of the few large picture books her grandmother had owned was on the Dutch masters of the gilded age. She had marvelled at them as a child and now she stood in front of the real deal breathlessly taking it all in. Whilst she had not been able to see them from the air she now got to enjoy the windmills and the tulips as strokes of oil paint on canvas and board. She finally understood the depictions of that enchanting blue sky as she had only just earlier experienced its proximate presence.

Eric couldn't help but notice Sookie would not stand out of place in a Vermeer painting as the exhibition lights lit up her face of wonder. The rich strokes of the paintings hardly captivated his gaze as the one who observed them so wondrously.

The food took some getting used to in all its unfamiliarity, as did the prices. Her wad of Euros were looking decidedly less impressive much to her chagrin.

Having already experienced one flight their next was less unnerving to Sookie despite the fact that the plane had decreased significantly in size and they were decidedly more cramped. Well mostly Eric and his freakishly long legs as Sookie had dubbed them. She couldn't help but giggle at the accompanying scowl.

Their arrival into Stockholm Arlanda airport was less exciting to Sookie in comparison to the last but she marvelled at the cleanliness and efficiency of everything. It wasn't long before they had gathered their bags from the conveyor belt and were waiting for the high speed train express into Stockholm.

While they had not ventured outdoors the underground tunnel did little to hide the chill of the outside air. Sookie had devoured the sight of all the snow from the sky; she loved the way the sun's light danced across the virgin snow. Her native northern Louisiana never saw snow in such copious amounts and she relished the sight of it. Her hands were itching to come into contact with the illustrious powdered substance that lay there in abundance.

Despite Sookie's enthusiasm for her surroundings her lids fell heavy on the short train ride and Eric had to rouse her from her slumber upon arrival at the train station. He expertly guided them to the taxis, had he been alone he would have taken the subway but the amount of bags they had brought with them inhibited this.

The taxi passed over bridges and tunnels past Gamla Stan, the old town, where the buildings looked out of something that Hans Christian Andersen wrote about. Eric pointed out the purpose and history of the more outspoken buildings that caught Sookie's attention. She couldn't wait to see it all up close.

They had arrived at their destination on the larger southern island of Södermalm in a street with tall houses with alternating dark rooflines. The exteriors were all painted in a different array of colours of strong pastels. Sookie got out of the cab and nearly slipped on the packed down snow on the pavement.

"We'll have to get you some better shoes." He said to her after he paid the chauffeur and helped steady her on the treacherous ground.

"Thanks," she smiled at him as they entered a building that appeared to be an apartment block but looked more like a very tall house. Sookie had expected to be going to a hotel again so she looked around curiously at this new environment. They moved into the elevator that took them to the top floor.

"The penthouse?" Sookie gushed as Eric's finger had pushed at the top button.

He smirked at her, "More like the attic with the rest of the servants."

Eric's apartment was hardly akin to servant quarters it was perfectly comfortable but it was decidedly different to an American version of a top floor apartment. Sookie took in the spaces nestled under the eaves of the building. It was spacious yet cosy and it stood in stark contrast to his apartment in Bethesda. The blonde wood of the floors were warming to the eye. The furnishings spoke of a comfort the sterility of his American home did not possess. He even had curtains in every room.

"Is this yours?" she asked at the unfamiliar sight before her.

"Yes," he replied. "No one knows I own this place, you're my first guest."

She understood the significance. His house in Bethesda was simply a placeholder, a place to rest his eyes, this was his true home. The fact that he had invited her in was almost sacrosanct.

"Thank you for hosting me," she said with her southern manners coming to the surface with guilt. "I feel like should have brought you something."

"The presence of your company is more than enough," he answered hoping to abate her concerns. He moved the bags into the bedroom as Sookie gravitated to the windows protruding from the slanted roof. She marvelled at the sight upon the old town across the expanse of water they had driven over earlier.

Pulling herself away from the enchanting view she followed on to the bedroom to explore the rest of the apartment. The bathroom was small barely containing a shower, a toilet and a sink. The bedroom was equally moderate fitting a bed and a wall of wardrobes. The smallest room turned out to be the central nervous system of Eric's investigation. The walls were covered in photographs and documents with pieces of string connecting them together. Filing cabinets stood to the walls filled with files. As she was taking it in Eric entered the room from behind her.

"I see you have found my little cave."

She didn't turn around at the sound of his voice as she continued to take it all in. His presence behind her had long since stopped startling her.

"This is your sister? Your parents?" She asked placing her fingers on the photographs surrounding a younger picture of Eric. Despite his earlier claims Sookie decided Eric certainly did not look becoming with longer locks of hair. She liked his short hair better as it was.

"Yes, Ella," he spoke as he pointed to his sister and then his parents, "Ulfrick and Astrid."

"Why would anyone want the death of an infant?" she sighed out as she looked upon the innocent baby girl.

"It is something I have spent the largest part of my life wondering," he spoke with the grief palpable in the air.

She turned towards him, not sure whether her embrace would offer any comfort but she offered it nonetheless. They stood holding each other for some time mourning the lives lost in their short life. A rumbling in her stomach broke them from their moment of bereavement.

"Let's go find you something to eat," he offered. She nodded and followed him out swaddling herself in her coat, scarf, gloves and hat. He chuckled a little at her appearance he hardly considered it cold outside.

They ate at a small café nearby and found Sookie two pairs of suitable boots and real woollen socks as they walked around town. Despite her joy of taking in the different sights, the early setting sun and the jet lag they found themselves retiring to bed early and neither one of them woke till the late morning.

While Sookie made use of the compact bathroom Eric had gone down the street to buy some bread and pastries from the bakery. Getting some essentials from the small supermarket next door. When he returned home he found a contented Sookie nursing a cup of coffee in his morning robe. He smiled at the sight of her, she was positively drowning in the sea of grey terrycloth and he did not refrain from telling her so.

"You really know how to make a girl feel self-conscious with your constant laughing at my appearance," she spoke with a hint of sarcasm.

"There is nothing funny about your appearance," he spoke so seriously she was almost scared to admonish him ever again. That was until he spoke his next sentence, "It's what you ensconce yourself in that's so hilarious."

"Ass," she grumbled as she threw a throw pillow from beside her on the couch. Of course he artfully dodged it to her great annoyance whilst continuing to laugh at her. Now specifically at her poor aim.

Her hands crossed across her chest as she released an annoyed huff whilst he set the table for breakfast. She joined him as he explained the workings of a typical Swedish breakfast. While she enjoyed it, especially the bread and pastries, she missed something warm. Eric promised to buy some more groceries with her later in the day and to make her his grandmother's porridge with lingonberry jam the next day.

"Is your grandmother still alive?" she asked as she was clearing the last plates.

"Yes, but she has Alzheimer's disease. She was already in a care home when Russell took me away but she is hardly ever lucid," he replied whilst stowing away the last of the breakfast items. "I would like to go and visit her today. If you are up for it."

"Sure. Does she remember you?" she asked not giving the request much thought.

"No it's the only reason I'm able to visit her without rousing suspicion. Sometimes she thinks I'm my father sometimes her husband."

"That must be weird."

"Yes," Eirc chuckled remembering his last visit with her. "She is especially vocal on her disapproval of me marrying her daughter."

"Are you considered dead or missing? Or did you simply 'disappear' like I did?"

"As far as I can tell the authorities presumed me kidnapped but a lack of a ransom has left the case closed and I am presumed to be dead."

"Do you have any other family in Sweden?"

"No my father was an only child and his parents were dead before I was born. My mother had an older brother, Olle," he explained whilst absently writing a grocery list. "He emigrated to the states after finishing university. I met him as a child but I have no memory of him."

"You never sought him out back home?" Her brows furrowed a little with the word 'home'. It no longer seemed an accurate description of the apartment in Bethesda.

"No it's best I retain my anonymity until I figure out why someone wanted my family dead. For all I know it may have been on his order" Sookie nodded in understanding as she lifted herself up on the kitchen counter.

"I'd really like you to _talk_ with my grandmother," Eric spoke to her more seriously as he finished off his list.

"You mean talk, talk?" He gave her affirmative noise. "I don't know how helpful I'll be and I'm not comfortable with the whole hypnosis thing on someone whose brain is already muddled. Besides if she was already incoherent when everything happened what will she know?"

"I wouldn't want you to hypnotise her either," he agreed. "The times she thought I was my grandfather she'd repeat the same phrase over and over again and she seems to express a genuine fear."

"What does she say?"

"Don't trust the American, it's not him, he just looks like him."

**A/N: Hi everyone, today is my fanfic b-day. I signed onto this site one year ago and in celebration I wrote a silly little one shot called The Doctor is in that has Dr Ludwig setting right some of the wrongs of CH's dead ever after. Please check it out if you like :-)**

**The blog entry had lots of accompanying pictures with this chapter so if you're into visuals check it out on hisviks dot wordpress dot com. I'll add a direct link to the chapter on my profile page.**


	8. Chapter 8 - Reclusion

"_Do you have any other family in Sweden?"_

"_No my father was an only child and his parents were dead before I was born. My mother had an older brother, Olle," he explained while absently writing a grocery list. "He emigrated to the states after finishing university. I met him as a child but I have no memory of him." _

"_You never sought him out back home?" Her brows furrowed a little with the word 'home'. It no longer seemed an accurate description of the apartment in Bethesda. _

"_No it's best I retain my anonymity until I figure out why someone wanted my family dead. For all I know it may have been on his order." Sookie nodded in understanding as she lifted herself up on the kitchen counter. _

"_I'd really like you to talk with my grandmother," Eric spoke to her more seriously as he finished off his list._

"_You mean talk, talk?" He gave her affirmative noise. "I don't know how helpful I'll be and I'm not comfortable with the whole hypnosis thing on someone whose brain is already muddled. Besides if she was already incoherent when everything happened what will she know?"_

"_I wouldn't want you to hypnotise her either," he agreed. "The times she thought I was my grandfather she'd repeat the same phrase over and over again and she seems to express a genuine fear."_

"_What does she say?"_

"_Don't trust the American, it's not him, he just looks like him."_

Chapter 8 - Reclusion

They had taken the subway north just outside of the centre of the city to the care home where Halina Lindquist had been living for twenty years. They signed in at the desk under one of Eric's many aliases. As far as the care home was concerned Eric, or Tobias, was the gardener's son at the Lindquist's villa in Vaxholm who visited his father's former employer on his behalf.

The nurse, Goderick Stendahl, was leading them to the small solarium where Halina was enjoying the warming rays of the winter sun.

"Mrs Lindquist really doesn't get many visitors. I think you have been the only one the last couple of years," Goderick spoke in perfect English for Sookie's benefit. She had been introduced as Eric's American girlfriend, Susanna, who was here as an exchange student. It grated Sookie that every Swede she had spoken to so far, be it a shop assistant or bus driver, spoke English better than some people back home while her grasp of their language was still evading her.

"She has very little family left," Eric said knowing that all too well for himself.

"Yes only a son. It has been a long time since he visited," Goderick noted with a hint of sadness. "So tragic what happened to her daughter and her family."

"She speaks about it?" Sookie asked hoping Goderick perhaps knew more.

"No. It never really registered with her, the doctors thought it best not to force such bad news on her over and over again. I remember it well though, I only just started working here it was quite the story in the newspapers."

They had reached the solarium and Goderick bid them a good visit. Eric put down the six-pack of beer and the Prinsesstårta, a traditional Swedish cake, on the table beside her. When Sookie had commented on the weird combination when he pulled it from the fridge Eric had simply shrugged and explained his grandmother was a simple women despite her wealth and this is what she enjoyed most in the world.

"Hej mormor," Eric said kissing her on the cheek twice once he was sure he was out of earshot of any of the nurses.

Eric and his grandmother conversed a bit in Swedish and Sookie let them until Halina seemed to be speaking directly at her. The only word Sookie seemed to be able to understand from her was Astrid, Eric mother's name. She looked towards Eric for some guidance who seemed to be trying to convince Halina of her misconception.

"She thinks you are my mother," he explained to Sookie. "She is very upset with you for dying your hair the colour of ditch water. She also thinks I made you do it."

"Tell her I agree with her about the ditch water colour, I can't wait to have my own colour back again." Sookie said with an encouraging smile directed at the elderly woman.

"I am perfectly capable of conversing with you in English. The Swedish language too common for you these days Astrid?" Halina spoke in the most formal English accent Sookie had ever heard a person speak at her. "I knew Ulfrick would fill you with contempt for your own people."

"I'm not Astrid, Mrs Lindquist," she tried. "I'm Sookie, Eric's friend."

"What is a Sookie?" Halina said stern disapproval. "I have never heard of this, stop these silly games Astrid and kiss your mor hello."

Eric just shrugged at Sookie so she decided to simply imitate Eric's earlier greeting with a "Hej mor"

"Now Ulfrick why don't you hand out the drinks and cake. At least you can make yourself useful at something."

Eric left the sunny space to get some plates and cutlery leaving Halina and an unsure Sookie behind.

"I wish you would just get rid of Ulfrick daughter. You could do so much better."

Entirely unsure of how to respond to that, Sookie did her best to channel Eric's mother. "He cares for me, more than any man ever has."

"Do you love him?" she asked, eyes laced with deep concern. "He seems so cold Astrid is he even capable of love?"

"I could love him and he is capable of loving me. I am certain of it," Sookie answered though not quite certain if she was still really speaking of Ulfrick and Astrid. "No one has ever made me feel as warm inside as he has."

"Always thinking with your loins aren't you?" Halina admonished. "Whatever happened with you and that American what was his name again?"

"Russell?" Sookie tried her best guess at the unknown American.

"No, no. Stop confusing me, you know who I speak of." It was at this moment that Eric returned in the room to a desperate looking Sookie who was scrambling for another name from Eric's file.

"Ah Hjalmar you are here," Halina said with a contented smile believing Eric to be her deceased husband. "Our daughter does not seem to remember the name of her American lover. What was it dear?"

"I am not sure," Eric responded with great interest. "Maybe you remember the first letter of his name?"

"I am unsure," she mused with her gaze distant. "A V or maybe an F… Vince? Is that right Hjalmar?"

"I don't know Halina. Does it sound right?" he asked carefully hoping to extract more information. "Do you remember his last name?"

She shook her head in almost childlike movement. Sookie had been pushing at the extremities of her ability but it seemed what Halina could not access in her current mental state was out of reach to Sookie as well.

"Is he the American you told father not to trust?" Sookie asked hoping to awaken some memories in her.

She watched as Halina's eyes dilated in fear.

"What do you know of him Astrid? Stay away from him he's a danger; he's a danger to us all. Run Astrid take Ulfrick and the children and run," Halina screamed at her.

"Who? Who is the American?" Sookie pleaded forcing the dial as far up on her ability without falling into hypnosis.

"RUN. Astrid run as far as you can. He cannot find you," Halina continued to scream. She reverted back into Swedish as she became extremely upset uttering words Sookie could no longer understand.

"Wait in her room. I'll try to calm her down," Eric instructed with an edge between the soothing sentences of Swedish he was speaking to his grandmother in an attempt to calm her panic down.

Sookie didn't hesitate to slip into Halina's personal room that they had passed on their way to the solarium. She looked around the room in boredom, it seemed institutional but there were some items that were distinctly personal. Sookie took note of the family photos in the thin rimmed silver frames. She was smiling at what she assumed was Eric as a young boy hiding amongst his mother's skirt his face blurred from shaking at the camera.

She turned around when she heard a knock at the door assuming it was Eric, she was surprised to find Goderick at the door with a stack of clean sheets.

"Oh hi," she spoke ineloquently.

"I can come back later," Goderick offered.

"No. No it's fine would you like some help?" Sookie responded.

"Halina is ok?" he asked as he was folding in the corner of the bottom sheet after Sookie had relayed a censured version of how Halina had gotten a bit upset after mistaking her for her daughter.

"Yes Tobias seems fit to handle her."

"You are good at this," he said ascertaining the perfectly folded hospital pleats on the corners of the mattress.

"My Gran always taught me how to do things proper," she smiled at him.

"You are a good influence on Halina's grandson I have never seen him so relaxed."

"Tobias is not her grandson." Sookie quickly lied, well technically 'Tobias' wasn't Halina's grandson.

"I do not know for certain but my suspicions are strong that he is her grandson Erik." Sookie's heart started palpitating erratically at Eric's exposure her stomach lying heavy with dread. She wondered briefly why Goderick was sharing this with her. Only then did it dawn on her that after Halina's outburst she never turned down her ability and Goderick was now experiencing it at full capacity.

"Have you ever shared your suspicions with anyone?" she asked trying to ascertain how harmful Goderick's knowledge was.

"No. Only to Halina, she doesn't believe me, she thinks of him as just a child. Her Erik is still so young. It is a bit like the mystery of the Romanov boy is it not?"

"Tobias isn't Halina's grandson, you can let go of your suspicions," she said pressing her suggestion hard onto his mind only relenting when she was satisfied when it seemed to have taken hold. "Has anyone ever come to seek information on Halina or her children?"

"A reporter, a few years after her daughter was killed," he replied as the top sheet draped over the mattress.

"Do you remember his name?"

"No. I was not here at the time. It may be in her file." He was admiring Sookie's handiwork with the top sheet and blanket. "You really are very good at this."

"Thank you. Will you look up the information in her file for me?"

"Sure, you should probably take her mail with you too. She doesn't receive a lot but there is a small pile in the office."

"You're very helpful Goderick," she said giving him a soft smile.

"You're very easy to talk to Susanna," he returned, fluffing the pillow and gathering the dirty sheets.

"If only you knew," she muttered to herself as soon as he was outside of his range of hearing.

Eric appeared at the door, "Susanna perhaps you can wait for me downstairs I don't want to risk upsetting her again now that she is calm."

"Sure. Maybe you can get me the things we were talking about Goderick." Eric raised his eyebrow in question so she simply mouthed the word 'later' to him and left with Goderick towards the nurse's station.

She started staring intently at Goderick holding his gaze as she pulled him into her hypnosis again. "Goderick you are being very helpful. You are being so helpful that you are going to take Halina Lindquist's file and make a copy of it and hand it to me. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Susanna." Goderick nodded with a distant glaze over his face.

By the time Eric joined Sookie again she was holding a thick stack of papers in the confines of her purse. She knew from Eric's extensive file he did not have a copy of his grandmother's medical file and at this point anything was helpful. Judging by what happened today she knew there was more to this American and Eric's grandmother was an intricate part of the puzzle.

They bid their goodbye to Goderick as they left the care home in great haste. Sookie was barely keeping up with Eric's lengthy stride.

"Eric, slow down please," Sookie pleaded almost out of breath. He came to a standstill almost forgetting she was there were not for her words.

"I'm sorry I just need to get home and write things down," he apologised.

"Here," she said as she pulled a notepad and pen from her purse and handed it to him. He sat himself down on a low stonewall and set to scribbling in a series of diagrams. He faintly heard her teeth clattering upon themselves as his mind was making rapid connections with all the known knowledge it contained. It wasn't until he had written out everything that was shrouding his brain that he noticed Sookie was shivering beside him.

"Shit," he muttered as he pulled her up from the cold stone wall. "Let's get you somewhere warm."

The area they were in was not as densely built up as the town centre and it took a while before Eric found a coffee shop for Sookie to acclimatise again. He put a giant mug of coffee in front of her that she thanked him profusely for.

"Christ that's strong," she cried out her eyes wide as she took in her first sip.

He smirked at her, "You're in Europe now where coffee actually tastes like coffee. Time to put some hair on your teeth."

"I like my teeth fine just as they are, thank you very much," she retorted while she loaded up her coffee with sugar and cream wondering where he had picked up this idiom.

"Was your grandmother ok after I left? I'm sorry if I went too far," she apologised when she was finally able to digest her coffee without an instant heart attack.

"No it wasn't you fault, she's unpredictable but I have never seen her react this strongly," he said reassuringly warming the frozen fingers of her free hand with his warm hands. "Whenever I asked about the American before she would simply shut down. I don't know if it was our conversation in English or your presence."

"Did she say anything after I left?" Sookie asked as she drank down another large gulp of coffee happy to be heating her insides.

"No, nothing of importance. What did you find?" he enquired pointing at her stack of papers protruding from her bag.

"Not here," she said in response. Sookie doubted anyone was eavesdropping on their conversation but she worried about revealing Goderick's suspicions to Eric. She feared for Goderick's life at Eric's hands and she felt it better to talk to him in private about it. "Here's her mail though," she said as she handed over the small stack of envelopes.

Eric set about organizing the envelopes. He had never been given her mail before it had always been forwarded to his uncle Olle and he wondered why this was no longer the case. Most of it was uninteresting administrative information that was put aside quickly along with the direct marketing mailings. When he had been unusually quiet and looking over the same letter over and over again she asked what it was.

"My grandmother has a safe deposit box I never knew about. It's paid by a trust I have no knowledge of," he replied absent-minded still clearly digesting the uncovered information.

"Can we get inside it?"

"Not without the key. Or I have to falsify some papers stating that one of us is her heir but the Swedish system is difficult to circumvent it could take quite a lot of time." His mind was already whirling with the possible scenarios, wondering if his contacts would be able to work as fast as he needed them to.

"Where could the key be?" Sookie wondered aloud.

"All her possessions are in her room everything else she owned was divided between my mother and my uncle." He checked his watch and cursed under his breath when he realised the visiting hours were over which he relayed to Sookie when she questioned his sudden darkening mood.

"Here," she said as an idea sprang in her head as she pulled out one of her earrings. "Tell them I lost it and you'll just quickly look for it."

"Susanna you're brilliant!" he exclaimed as he put a forceful smack of his lips on her forehead before running out of the coffee shop.

"You're welcome Tobias," she said after him even though he was long gone by the time she finished her sentence. Tobias seemed to bring out an exuberant version of Eric that Sookie had yet to meet. She softly rubbed the spot where his lips had grazed her with a small smile.

She bought herself a cup of hot chocolate as she now had enough caffeine in her system to last her for days. She was halfway through her latest drink when a triumphant Eric returned claiming, "Success!"

"You have the key? How did you find it so quickly?" she said amused with his boyish excitement.

"I asked and she told me where it was," he answered as he handed back her earring which had her shivering from his cool touch.

"Well that was easy. Did she tell you what was inside it?"

"No she wouldn't tell me. Who knows maybe it's nothing," he spoke with some restraint.

"But at least it's something," she smiled at him.

oOoOoOo

They made it back to the apartment just before the sun had started to set towards the horizon in the late afternoon. They were loaded up with grocery bags, which Sookie set away while Eric retreated into his 'little cave'. He returned a little while later as he set to prepare a simple dinner of baked salmon, dill potatoes and beetroots. Sookie sat on the bench below one of the windows staring out over Gamla Stan, the old town, watching the sky turn a myriad of colours as the sun took its final descent of the day. It was fully dark when Eric announced his completion of their dinner and Sookie pulled her eyes from the emerging lights that lit up the night sky.

Eric had noticed she had been acting distant towards him again. He worried it was his callous behaviour when he was preoccupied with the turbulence in his head earlier that afternoon. He feared it might have been his forward actions back in Toronto, it had happened less than two days ago even though it seemed like a lifetime away. He apologised for his behaviour this afternoon and Sookie barely looked up at him to register what he said to her as she was too lost in thought of how to approach telling him of her conversation with Goderick.

"I've told you before Eric don't apologise so much it doesn't suit you. A man who cooks for me has little to be sorry for," she said to him with a tentative smile. Eric turned out to be quite the accomplished cook, much to Sookie's surprise seeing that she had not seen him near any cooking utensil in Bethesda. It was like discovering a whole new side of him in Sweden.

"Are you running away from me with Goderick?" he asked jokingly hoping to pull her from her continued state of disquiet. The man was half his size and twice his age, however friendly he may have been Eric was confident enough to know it would be the last thing Sookie would do.

She flinched at the mention of Goderick's name. Not believing there was any truth found in his jovial statement he pressed further now worried something else had occurred in his absence. She had seemed slightly unnerved when he had come to find her in Halina's room. Panic rose in him as his protective nature reared to the surface while his hand firmly grasped her thigh.

"Sookie did Goderick do something to you? Was he inappropriate with you, did he touch you?" he asked as fear continued to rise in his system.

"What? No he was perfectly polite," she said, taking a brief moment for a deep sigh she watched him physically relax again as he released his hold on her. She picked at her last piece of potato as she looked at his anticipating face. "You have to promise me what I tell you won't come at the expense of Goderick's life."

"I can't make such a promise unless I know what he has done to you," he spoke coolly like the ever stoic assassin that rested inside him. A part of Sookie wished this side of him had been left behind an ocean away too. There was no doubt in her mind had Goderick done what Eric had feared the helpful nurse would be exhaling his last breaths in minutes of Eric knowing about it. That knowledge only made the anxiety of what she had to tell him all the more unnerving.

She let out an annoyed sigh. "He hasn't done anything to me. He won't do anything to harm _you_ or me for that matter. I just need to know you won't kill him for what he confided in me."

"If he is not a threat or an accomplice to my family's murder he will be safe," Eric stated simply although the commitment sounded tepid at best.

Sookie expelled a sigh of relief, "He has suspected for quite some time that you are not the gardener's son but Halina's grandson." Rage seemed to flounce over his features, she grabbed the hand that rested on her body in an attempt to calm him down. "He hasn't told _anyone _of his suspicions except your grandmother," she quickly stressed trying to reign in his reaction.

"You are certain of this?" he asked after the spike of fear had tempered down again.

"Yes, I'd accidentally forgot to flip the switch to off on my ability after Halina's outburst and it was set to high. I didn't realise until halfway through my conversation with Goderick," Sookie informed. "He has now let go of his suspicions thanks to a little force of my suggestion. A reporter has been the only outsider who ever came to investigate your grandmother. Goderick offered to look up the name in her file as well as hand over the mail without my persuasion."

She pulled her copy of the file from her purse. "I 'asked' him for a copy of your grandmother's file. I doubt it's the investigators real name if it wasn't a reporter but I figured her file may hold some interesting leads."

Eric was touched that she had made use of her hypnotising skills. He thought after her breakdown with Long Shadow's interrogation she wouldn't be open to using that particular skill voluntarily and so easily. He pulled the resting hand atop his to his mouth and kissed her hand chastely in a decidedly old fashioned manner as he released the words thank you from his mouth.

"I would not have harmed Goderick based on the information you have shared with me, whether you had made me make that promise or not," he offered in demonstration of his morality.

"That's good to know," she replied as she handed over the file to him.

Eric disappeared into his cave for the rest of the night. Sookie was already fast asleep for several hours when he joined her in their shared bed. He chanced a moment to burrow his face in the crook of her neck and inhale her unique natural scent. He desperately needed her proximity and he longed to snuggle into her warm inviting body. She had brought him something he never possessed before. Hope.

Her mere presence seemed to bring a calm to his eternal inner turmoil. A hint of her scent soothed an ache no one had ever been able calm. Yet Toronto had taught him to be cautious with her. Even if his body was demanding he just fuck the memory of the annoying prick out of her system. He couldn't contain the smile at how magnificent it would be when that happened. Regretfully he kept his distance hoping for the day she might come to him instead.

oOoOoOo

Sookie woke to the distinctive smell of porridge filling her nostrils. She wafted her nose excitedly over the pot on the stove as Eric shooed her away. He explained it was his grandmother's secret recipe; a few cardamom pods, some orange peel and a grated apple. He decided to leave out telling her of the Swedish tradition of placing a single almond in the porridge at Christmas time. Whoever found it would be married within the year. He guessed probably correctly that her abruptly broken off engagement was still a sore subject he best not bring up considering his version was loaded with the nuts.

She didn't bother asking him where they would be heading today he would probably be shoving her out the door to the bank as soon as she finished wolfing down the delicious porridge that was topped with lingonberry jam and toasted flaked almonds.

He hardly heard her appraisal of his breakfast effort as he impatiently looked at her to hurry up and get ready to leave. The clock suffered a lot under his stare that morning. Sookie was sure that if Eric had the ability to accelerate time days would have passed with his impatient glares directed at the indicator of time.

She showered and dressed in record time and he didn't spare the time to mock her mummified appearance. They were rustling through the crowds of the morning commuters to get to the bank in the affluent district of Östermalm not far from Strandvägen where Eric's grandparents used to live.

Eric had spent the late hours of the evening forging a power of attorney from Olle Lindquist, Halina's legal guardian, for his daughter Pernille Lindquist to represent him on his behalf. Sookie held her American passport under Pernille's name at hand, as instructed, when they met up with the bank manager. When acquiring several identities for Sookie he knew it would be prudent to have one that could be used in situation just like these. He had a passport of his own with a Lindquist name for the very same reason but if he had learnt one thing from dealing with Pam it was that men never suspected a women of ill will. In Pam's case, she proved them decidedly wrong every time.

The bank manager barely glanced at the paperwork as he led them down to the basement where he opened a series of secured doors until they were in the vault that housed Halina's safe deposit box. He opened it using both sets of keys and left them to it instructing them to buzz when they were ready to leave again.

There were several items along with a few stacks of cash. Eric opened a small jewellery box in which he recognised his great grandmother's wedding ring. It had been a great cause of discontent between his mother and Halina. His mother would have wanted him to take it but he figured a man without a true identity he would never get married so why bother. He set it aside to look at the other items.

There were some bonds, which he doubted held any value and copies of deeds to homes she no longer owned. A bundle of letters were neatly tied in a ribbon in what he assumed to be his grandmother's handwriting. He set those aside to take back home. Sookie seemed to be intently staring at a photograph of a handsome man most likely taken in the 1940's.

"Are you losing interest in me already?" he asked in mock hurt.

Released from her suspended state she replied, "No. This man," she said trailing her fingertip over the gentle face. "He could be a dead ringer for my brother." He took the photograph from her looking it over for any marks but found it untouched. Although Eric had never seen Jason Stackhouse in the flesh the photographs he had seen of him when investigating Sookie had left a distinctive imprint. The resemblance was uncanny. He placed the photo by the stack of letters to take with them.

They continued to look through the rest of the contents but they hardly gathered any of their interest. Eric didn't know exactly what he was looking for but the rest were simply heirlooms of some value but of no relevance to their investigation. Eric found one more document of interest pertaining to the trust that paid for the safe deposit box. Strangely enough it was set up and maintained by a lawyer from New Orleans. They called up to the bank manager to leave and were quickly out the door with a restlessly pacing Eric as a result of the morning's excitement.

Recognising his frantic state from the day before, she begged him to slow down again. Instead of following him home she decided she would remain in the northern part of the city to roam the shops and see some sights for as long as the cold would allow her. Instinctively she knew he would disappear into his cave alone with his thoughts. Eric hardly listened to her plans as he absently pulled her body into his while he sniffed at the scent that lingered in her hair, he dropped a kiss to her forehead before disappearing down the steps to the tunnelbanan. Again she rubbed over the point of impact with a small smile.

When she returned from her exploration of the city shortly after sunset as expected Eric hadn't left the cave. Nor did he notice her return to the apartment. Sookie set about to make dinner and when he still hadn't appeared when it was ready and calling to him thrice, she pulled him physically from his hideout.

He wasn't much of a conversationalist at that point and whatever Sookie had told Eric about her day was lost on him. It continued on like this for five days where he only appeared when she dragged him out to eat. He slept intermittently on the day bed in his cave and as the days passed by his appearance began to suit his locked away hidey hole; he was looking decidedly more caveman. He was so absent minded Sookie wondered if Eric would even notice if she walked around the house naked. However, she lacked the courage to test her theory.

It was to Sookie's great relief that on the sixth day he emerged cleanly shaven and freshly showered and dressed in clean clothes offering to help her make breakfast. He informed her he would be away that day for a few errands and offered to cook them both dinner again. Glad to see him back to some semblance of normal she didn't dare question what had him cloistered away these past few days as she set about planning her own day of exploration.

oOoOoOo

Sookie decided to visit the Stockholm public library on Sveavägen. She ended up spending far more time in it than she had expected despite the lack of books in English. She was completely overwhelmed by the temple dedicated to knowledge. The large round cupola that was the centre of the building with the walls lined with books seemed to just hold her in its embrace. It was in the small adjoining café by the entrance where Sookie met Amelia Broadway.

Amelia was able to spot a fellow American a mile away and she instantly latched onto Sookie. Glad to be making a new friend, especially considering Eric's mental absence the past few days, Sookie happily conversed over the mundane.

Amelia was an actual exchange student, unlike the one Sookie/Susanna pretended to be in the presence of strangers, studying at the Stockholm School of Economics just across the park. She mostly rambled about her life in Stockholm, her boyfriend Alcide and her estranged relationship with her father.

Sookie told her a censured and supplemented version of the past events in her recently upturned life. Her cover story was that she was staying with Eric to get away from all the gossipmongers and vultures that had been surrounding her after the messy fallout of her engagement. She needed a break and Eric offered to let her stay with him. Amelia instantly tortured her on her relationship with Eric but Sookie quickly shut it down stating they were really just friends. They exchanged telephone numbers and Sookie promised to go out sometime.

oOoOoOo

Eric had been cooking elk steak when Sookie returned home later day. She set the table for them both and alleviated Eric's worry with his choice of meat. Her brother was quite the avid hunter so eating game was not an unusual thing to her. They sat quietly enjoying their meal as Sookie told Eric about meeting Amelia at the library and he actually managed engaged responses.

"My uncle is dead," he suddenly said out of nowhere making Sookie drop the glass of red wine from her hands.

"Shit, I'm so sorry," she muttered as she started grabbing at the pieces of glass.

"Be careful," he warned as he returned from the kitchen with some cloths and a duster and pan.

"Fuck!" she exclaimed as a piece of glass cut into her skin forcing blood to ooze out. He simply gave her an 'I told you so' look as he looked over her bleeding finger. He wrapped a clean cloth around it and guided her to the kitchen where he sat her down on the counter.

"The rug…" she protested.

"Is already lost," he finished for her as he pulled a package of band aids from a kitchen drawer. "It's replaceable you are not."

She grumbled a little at his assuage. "It's just a small cut. I'll live."

He finished disinfecting the wound and wrapping the band aid around her finger desisting the bleed. He finished with a small kiss across the injury just like she had for him in the hotel in Ithaca.

"All better," he announced pleased with his nursing of her. She gave him an amused smile in gratitude of her grandmother's words of comfort.

"I'm sorry for your loss," she offered remembering the news that had initiated the series of events that led them to the kitchen.

He simply shrugged unaffected, "Why mourn someone you never knew."

"That wasn't the reason you've been M.I.A. for the past five days?" she asked her voice now shrill with indignation.

"No," Eric spoke coolly as he moved his intimidating body between her turned out thighs his hands on the counter's edge caging her in. She moved her body as far back as physically possible in recoil.

He eased himself back a bit as he noticed her discomfort and let out a sigh as he reached for her uninjured hand. He carefully encouraged her off the counter as he asked her to follow him into his little cave.

Sookie looked at the wall that had previously been bare as he said, "This is what has been occupying me these past few days."

The wall was strewn with copies of the different medical documents and letters with highlighted sections. Strings were moving back and forth between them. A large concentration of threads were leading back to the picture that had reminded Sookie so much of her brother. The words 'The American?' were written in Eric's distinctive script underneath on a piece of white card.

"The information you gathered for me was," he took a small breath searching the appropriate term, "extensive. The staff at the care home have been meticulously recording the things she's been saying and her reactions to them. The psychiatrist on staff has made detailed notes and drawn interesting parallels. The letters are a correspondence from what I think is the American. They are vague and without the other half of the correspondence it is difficult to determine what they are responding to. It's almost code and none are signed with a full name only an initial."

"Have you had a breakthrough?" she asked hopefully considering his morning return to the rest of the world.

"Not yet. My suspicions on my grandmother's involvement are now confirmed and I need to identify this 'American'. My mother dated an American man named Vance when she was 21 but I do not think it is him. It seems to be someone connected to Halina."

Sookie nodded in understanding. She carried a sense of relief with the realisation that he hadn't been retreating from her as she had feared subconsciously. Eric had simply been lost in the haze of Halina's mind trying to create some semblance of order in it.

"I need to go back to the US to investigate that my uncle's death was indeed accidental and not related to any of this." He gestured at walls covered with the evidence of their investigation.

"So we're leaving again," she concluded, with a bit of a sigh as she dreaded another set of flights.

"No. You're staying here it's safer."

"What? No. You'll need my help investigating," she said pointing at the temple of her head in demonstration of her ability.

"My uncle was found dead while visiting the capital," Eric explained sitting himself down, "From what I've been gathering Compton has been doing some investigations. Most specifically in locating your engagement ring."

"Shit. I forgot that it was some family heirloom," she rebuked herself in memory.

"Word around town is it belongs to Lorena and she's pissed to find it missing."

For the first time Eric finally understood the expression, green around the gills, as her face seemed to be physically tinting into that specific colour. The betrayal of her trust rushing to the forefront once more. When she returned with the sound of a flushing toilet in the background her face left no doubt that she didn't want to talk about it. A part of her had left that past behind and she wanted to give it no attention in her new beginnings abroad.

"Are you sure you'll be able to get the information you need without me?" she tried again intent on returning with him. She sat beside him on the daybed their bodies angled towards each other. His arm immediately wrapped around her as she leaned in a little.

"It's my home territory, I know how to grease the wheels," Eric said as he rubbed her back soothingly trying to distract himself from his gutter ridden thoughts whenever he came into contact with the back of her bra as she rested her head on his shoulder. "I'll be back before you know it," he offered with a soft kiss to the crown of her head. Had it been safe he would have taken her, but at some point her safety had come above his own. Much to his frustration he couldn't pinpoint the exact moment when this happened all he knew was that he would miss her constant presence while he was gone.

She hated to admit it but he had become her security blanket to the world, whisking her away from the ill intent of others and bringing her to this safe haven. It wasn't a fear of being left alone that had her missing the foundations her feet now rested on, it was doubt.

"What aren't you telling me?" she asked suspiciously finding his flighty eyes with her own determined ones. Eric was usually straight with her, not bothering to placate her insecurities.

"I will be seeking the help of Sophie Anne," he admitted softly trying to hold on her fleeing body that had been nestled into his. The hurt look on her face gave no room for argument. He was guilty and they both knew it. He tried appeasing her with arguments but Sookie could hardly stand to listen. "She is the goddaughter of the lawyer that set up my grandmother's secret trust and is executor to my uncle's estate. She has already agreed to help me."

She felt betrayed once more and it hurt all the more that it was Eric. That he would seek the help of one of the co-conspirators that had no qualms in aiding Bill and Lorena.

"I'll see you when you get back then," she said coolly as she retreated to their once shared bedroom and closed the door on it. The very same door she had left open in invitation every night previous.

…

…

…

**A/N: I received a guest review last week that seemed unhappy with the amount of description and that the story seemed to be going nowhere. I feel everyone is entitled to their opinion and in fact it helps me as I am new to this. Yes last week's chapter in particular was descriptive in marking a transition. To me those are important moments to acknowledge; we're moving from Sookie's story into Eric's. The two main characters aren't the mirror parallels to their SVM/TB equivalent, it seems impossible in AH universe to me. In my opinion a certain amount of their motivations and character needs to be built up. **

**This story moves slowly, feeding crumbs before you get to the main chunk. Details are woven through with intent, they are not there to merely fatten up the text. This a suspense/romance story after all, as indicated in the description. The story reveal itself layer by layer. As for it going nowhere, I'm currently writing chapter 35, if that was the case at this point in the story I wouldn't have gotten that far.**

**If you had expectations that within a few chapters we'd uncover the mystery behind Eric's family's death, to then continue by shooting everyone in a high octane fuelled revenge spree where Eric and Sookie fall madly into bed with each other in the process of knowing each other for minutes, than this isn't the story for you. We all have our likes and dislikes and that's fine. I don't like reading stories written in the present tense it doesn't mean that others can't enjoy them. **


	9. Chapter 9 - Interlude

_She hated to admit it but he had become her security blanket to the world, whisking her away from the ill intent of others and bringing her to this safe haven. It wasn't a fear of being left alone that had her missing the foundations her feet now rested on, it was doubt._

"_What aren't you telling me?" she asked suspiciously finding his flighty eyes with her own determined ones. Eric was usually straight with her, not bothering to placate her insecurities._

"_I will be seeking the help of Sophie Anne," he admitted softly trying to hold on her fleeing body that had been nestled into his. The hurt look on her face gave no room for argument. He was guilty and they both knew it. He tried appeasing her with arguments but Sookie could hardly stand to listen. "She is the goddaughter of the lawyer that set up my grandmother's secret trust and is executor to my uncle's estate. She has already agreed to help me."_

_She felt betrayed once more and it hurt all the more that it was Eric. That he would seek the help of one of the co-conspirators that had no qualms in aiding Bill and Lorena. _

"_I'll see you when you get back then," she said coolly as she retreated to their once shared bedroom and closed the door on it. The very same door she had left open in invitation every night previous. _

Chapter 9 – Interlude

Eric had departed in the early morning hours and all Sookie found of him was a file that contained translated obituaries of his parents and a request that she try and seek out Halina again. He didn't bother with an apology, well aware with her policy by now. She assumed the obituaries were to provide some background information in case Halina mistook her for Astrid again. Sookie visited her every day that Eric was gone but Halina was never lucid or talkative enough when Sookie came by. She told the staff she was writing a short story on the elderly woman for a class and they seemed to indulge Sookie's presence and her inquisitive questions without qualms. Unfortunately she didn't discover anything new that hadn't become apparent from her file.

It was on the fifth day that she received a call from Amelia to come out with some of her friends that night. Having only had Halina as company for days she agreed without hesitation. At the realisation she didn't have anything appropriate to wear in her limited wardrobe Amelia promptly invited her to her apartment in Vasastan, not far from the library where they had initially met, so she could borrow her something for the evening.

Sookie happily gave Amelia wide berth to play dress up with her, trying on several of Amelia's clothes. They were hardly the same size or body type, Amelia was waifish where Sookie was more of a classic hourglass, but Amelia had a wardrobe that would cater to a whole host of different women. Whenever she would have arguments with her father, which was often, she would retaliate by assaulting his credit card not mindful at all to what she was buying.

They finally agreed on a dark navy body con dress that Amelia would never be able to fill out but fitted Sookie like a glove. Sookie did insist on wearing very warm tights and her leather boots with a modest heel underneath. She would not be venturing out into the cold, bare legged like Amelia was intending to.

As the evening progressed Amelia's friends joined them who had all been very pleasant with Sookie. They each seemed to be originating from a uniquely different part of the world and spoke with interesting accents, which Sookie sometimes found difficult to understand forcing them to repeat a word to her over and over again. The drinks that were being downed in the process were hardly helping everyone's coherence and was only adding to the greater hilarity of it all.

It was already getting quite late in the evening and Sookie wondered if they were ever going to leave the apartment when Amelia's boyfriend arrived with a waiting taxi downstairs. They piled into the van and headed off to a club where Amelia gleefully announced, "Drinks are on Daddy!" while flashing about her selection of black credit cards.

After an intense round of carefree dancing Sookie left the extensive gyrating and grinding to Amelia and her friends as she breathlessly collapsed in the sumptuously decorated booth with Alcide. He had briefly introduced himself earlier, he seemed sweet to Sookie. He was attractive standing just as tall as Eric but with wavy brown hair and mischievous green eyes. He was a diplomat's son from Paris. His mother, Elisabetta, a contessa from Italy and his father, Jacques Herveaux, descendant from a long line of public servants serving the French government since Napoleon's regime.

She was completely engrossed in the nonchalance at which Alcide spoke of his life, lineage and experiences while he seemed suitably unimpressed by his own tales. It caught her completely unaware as she was laughing at one of his stories when he pulled her body upon his and kissed her hard on the lips pushing his punishing tongue between the seams of her lips. In her intoxicated state she opened up and permitted his tongue to seek out hers, thinking she should allow herself a moment of validation in the hands of a handsome man. 

oOoOoOo

It was the very next morning that Eric emerged by the door of the bedroom bags in hand.

"Miss me?" he asked with a triumphant smile.

"Whatever makes you say that?" she groaned her head pounding away at her skull.

He simply held up his phone displaying the text released by her drunken thumbs. She pulled it towards her hardly making out the message with squinted eyes.

"Shit," she groaned the actions of her drunken behaviour only now resurfacing again. She let her body crash back down upon the bed as she let out a frustrated low grunt. It was too early to think or fain enthusiasm at Eric's return.

"I am never drinking or having sex ever again." Her words were laced with venom as she projected them at the non-threatening white expanse of the ceiling.

When she moved her head back to the door Eric had disappeared and she heard the coffee machine churning in the background. He re-entered the room set down a mug of coffee on the bedside table and departed mumbling he'd be back later that night and not to wait up for him.

Sookie just closed her eyes and only barely remembered his presence when she saw the coffee that had gone cold beside her when she woke again in the early afternoon. Still in pain she sought out aspirin in the bathroom, unable to muster the courage to look at the train wreck she would surely find looking back at her in the mirror.

"Who the hell doesn't have aspirin," she moaned miserably. "Of course the man who doesn't believe in curtains either." Sookie sighed painfully at her reflection during a failed effort to soothe her headache by massaging the temples of her forehead.

She set about to ingest copious amount of greasy foods and gallons of coffee and spent the rest of the day lounging on the couch watching mindless reality TV, trying fervently to forget the events of the previous night. Apparently the Swedes were obsessed with the reality genre, as it seemed to be playing on all the different channels.

She looked at her phone intermittently, noting no new messages from Eric, much to her disappointment nor was he answering her calls. There was a text from Amelia but she deleted it without reading it. She made a note to buy a new burner phone in the morning. If it wasn't her only connection to an absent Eric she would have tossed this one out by now.

Somewhere in the late afternoon she had fallen asleep again with the television still on. She woke to a rumbling stomach and some sort of cook off show playing in the background which she promptly switched off. Encouraged by her empty stomach she went in search of something to eat in the fridge. It wasn't until she placed some leftovers in the microwave that she noticed that it was well past midnight.

Sookie startled at the sound of jiggling keys by the front door and was relieved to find Eric at the other side of it. In her excitement at seeing him again, now fully sober, she flew her arms around him.

"Good to see you back," she greeted him genuinely happy to see him despite her feelings about Sophie Anne. The time apart had given Sookie pause to think and she came to the conclusion that she would have done the same in his position. She had hoped to tell him this before he got back but she had lacked the courage to call him. However, he held his body firm not reciprocating her embrace as he coolly disentangled her arms from him.

"Yes," he simply responded monotonously as he moved past her and towards his little cave. Sookie was confused with the apparent aloofness and she quickly followed his movements through the apartment. She leaned into the doorpost of the room where he had seated himself behind the desk as he continued to ignore her presence.

"I didn't like you seeking out Sophie Anne's help," Sookie said regretfully. "But I understand the necessity. I forgave you before you even left the country. I'm sorry I didn't say anything sooner."

He nodded his understanding but he didn't speak any more fumbling unnecessarily through the papers upon his desk. Confused at why her apology hadn't cleared the air she wracked her brain what else she had to apologise for. The text was relatively harmless maybe she had said something unkind earlier?

"I'm sorry if I said or did anything this morning? I was a bit hung over."

"I am not upset with what you did _this morning," _he spoke pointedly emphasizing the last two words.

"Spit it out Eric," she said irately her growling stomach not helping matters. "I've never taken passive aggressive well."

Sookie barely made out his clenching fists in the dimly lit room, as he seemed to be shoring up his response.

"Fine," Eric gritted out. "Next time you seek out meaningless sexual encounters I prefer you not to invite strangers into my home."

"What! This is what has you upset? No one came in here Eric. This is your home I wouldn't jeopardise your safety or your privacy," she spoke erratically desperate to disprove his erroneous thoughts. "I had the night from hell. Whatever made you think I was entertaining men in your bed?"

"You said you were never drinking and having sex again and the room stank of both," he sneered at her masking the hurt of her betrayal. There were no spoken agreements between them but her promise of 'someday' had kept him firmly bound to her.

She sighed heavily, "Well the drinking was on account of the hangover, I don't think I've ever drank so much. Those cocktails sure go fast."

Eric gave her annoyed glare to get on with it.

"Right, self-explanatory. The sex: where to begin…. Amelia invited me out to a club with her," she trailed off into her story.

oOoOoOo

_The previous evening_

"Stop," Sookie managed with some semblance of sobriety to pull her body from Alcide's wandering hands and lips. For the mere second of enjoyment that she allowed guilt and regret crashed into her threefold.

"You are not enjoying yourself?" Alcide whispered in his thick accent, still holding her firmly by her arms.

"Yes. I mean no. You're a very good kisser..." her words were spilling out at high speed before she took a much needed breath, "Amelia." _Eric._

"Amelia told me you needed cheering up, _non_?" Alcide returned with a cheery grin while loosening the grasp on her at which Sookie immediately distanced herself from him.

"What? I'm not gonna do this it's really inappropriate," Sookie mumbled as she quickly exited from the booth in search for Amelia to bid her goodbye. She hoped not all French men were this inconsiderate towards their partners. From what Sookie had gathered from Amelia and seen from their interactions they were a really happy couple together.

"Suzy what happened to you?" Amelia asked as she took in her frazzled appearance. She pulled a tissue from her designer purse and started cleaning up the smeared lipstick around her lips.

"Minor altercation, I'm sorry Amelia but I think I'm gonna head home," she yelled over the loud thumping music.

"No. Please stay we're having so much fun," Amelia pleaded pulling her by the hands to dance with her again. Sookie stood her ground and shook her head no, standing still in the over joyous crowd writhing in synchronised movements. "Well if you insist Alcide will bring you home."

"No I'll manage on my own. Don't worry about me."

"Don't you like Alcide, hasn't he been friendly to you?" Sookie really didn't know how to respond, had you asked her five years ago she would have immediately told Amelia about Alcide's advances. Today she wasn't ready to be _that_ friend. She had been _that_ friend to Tara and that hadn't ended well.

"Alcide's fine. I just really don't want to be around any men right now," she lied. What she really meant was _I really don't want to be around your man right now_.

"Suze I'm so sorry," Amelia said gave with a small pout. "Tell you what I'll send Alcide away he seems to be moping in the corner anyway. Then we'll head over to Riche, the security there is way better. Just us girls."

Sookie considered it. Up until Alcide's unwelcome attentions she was having a really good time with Amelia and her friends. "Ok, just us girls," she agreed.

The rest of the evening had continued in much the same spirit as before and Sookie had really enjoyed herself as the three remaining girls stumbled out of the club. They were drunk arguing about how to get home, Sookie just wanted to get back to Södermalm to the comfort of her own bed. However she seemed unable to pronounce her street name in her drunken slur, much to Amelia and Katrina's hilarity. Eventually it was decided Sookie would stay in Amelia's guest room until someone could understand where she lived. At this point Sookie really didn't care where she was going to sleep as long as it had a pillow. Amelia was texting away rapidly on her phone while intermittently making out with Katrina on the cab ride back.

Sookie was glad she hadn't told Amelia about her concerns with Alcide earlier. Apparently they were both liberal with their lips. When they got to Amelia's apartment Katrina was dragged into the main bedroom while Sookie was pointed towards the guest bedroom. She heard the two women start to make out again but she was too tired to care. Sookie entered the bedroom not bothering to switch on the light kicked off her boots and slid under the covers of the bed where she collided with a hard, warm and very naked body.

"Fuck me," she groaned in annoyance with perhaps not her best choice of words. Amelia didn't tell her she'd be sharing a bed with some random person. Before she could even identify the stranger his voice made himself known.

"Happy to oblige, _ma __chérie,_" he spoke excitedly as Alcide moved his body over hers clawing at her dress. Sookie froze at his assault on her as well as the words he had spoken to her. They were some of the first words Eric had spoken to her with amusement, when they stopped being assassin and mark and became Eric and Sookie. She filled with rage that someone else would sully those words for her.

"Get the fuck off me!" Sookie screamed into the dark.

"Suzy do not worry it is me, Alcide," he returned holding her firm in his grasp as he continued his forced seduction on her, kissing down her still dressed body as he tried to lift the hem of her dress.

"I know who you are," she hissed as she desperately tried to keep her clothing on her body but it hardly seemed to stop his onslaught.

"AMELIA!" she screamed trying to release herself from Alcide's grasp.

The door flung open to an Amelia sporting a pair of lacy boy shorts and nothing else as light flooded in behind her. Instead of the domestic dispute Sookie had expected while she scrambled out of the bed Amelia seemed decidedly unimpressed by her boyfriend in bed with another woman.

"What's wrong Suzy? I thought you and Alcide hit it off."

Sookie's jaw was hanging down, her mouth gaping, wondering how the hell she had ended up here, in this situation.

"Seriously? What's wrong with _me_?" she yelled finding some semblance of rationality in her drunken state. "Who the hell pimps out their boyfriend to their friends? What made you think staying over at your house meant me sleeping with your boyfriend?"

She simply shrugged completely unbothered by the situation at hand and her own naked state. "We have an open relationship when one of us sees something they like we help each other out. We were hoping you'd join us both in our bed eventually. You have a great body you know."

Sookie had heard enough and gathered her things and ran for the front door while unfortunately overhearing the trail end of Amelia and Alcide's conversation over her departure.

"Come on Alcide join me and Katrina."

"Pfff. She screeches so much. I really wanted to fuck that Snoozie tonight."

Sookie slammed the door behind her disgusted at their behaviour. She walked the streets of Stockholm vainly in search of a taxi. Her feet were killing her and she wished she could just call Eric and he would rescue her like he always would.

In an unbridled drunken moment she sent him a text after the days of radio silence between them.

_I miss you. Please come back to me. _

oOoOoOo

"So in the end I ended up walking the whole way back home and you found me exhausted a few hours later," she said as finished relaying the entire story to Eric.

Eric pulled her miserably sagging body into his in the kindest of embraces. "I'm sorry I overreacted," he murmured into the shell of her ear. Eric held himself together for her but underneath rage was boiling at what had happened to her in his absence. "You seemed so out of character I should have known better. I'm sorry to have assumed the worst."

Sookie sighed contentedly in his chest. "For once your apologies are actually warranted. Thank you for being here for me." She buried her head in a little further, basking in the comfort he offered. "Seriously Eric, do I you just scream 'sexual plaything for you to use and abuse'?" Sookie asked looking up at him finally releasing the tears she had been holding in all day.

He looked down at her earnestly, brushing aside the hair that had stuck to her dampened face. "Don't you ever think that. You are trusting, loving, loyal and kind," Eric said confessing her most admired qualities as he kissed the top of her head. It hit him then that the smell that lingered in hair now resonated as home to him. Ever since arriving back in Sweden he hadn't felt settled until this moment. Breathing in the scent of the first woman who was trusting, loving, loyal and kind to him. "Perhaps these are qualities you shouldn't bestow so easily on strangers. Listen to your gut a little more. Did you even think to use your ability on Alcide or Amelia?"

She shook her head no, Sookie wondered aloud what it was that made her utilise her ability so easily with people who had the best intentions but shut it out with those with the worst.

"People with good intentions aren't defensive, they're open to you, they have nothing to hide as long as they are unaware of your ability," he concluded after some thought.

"That's what it was like for you?" she asked with furrowed brows. "You came to kill me, your intentions were hardly good."

"I was highly reluctant to kill you to begin with," he corrected as his ran through her tangled hair. "After the dud I had no interest in harming you. Before that it was only because I had to and even then I was struggling with it."

"Ok," she spoke softly to his chest.

"Come, let's get your food."

He sat her down at the table as he checked on her impromptu meal and he reheated it slightly and served it to her with a tall glass of water.

"It's true," she smiled at him. "You really do have the best intentions."

He couldn't help but smile back at her, his anger at the situation dissipating, as he sat across from her nursing his own glass of water.

"You don't drink," Sookie remarked only now realising she had never seen him partake in alcohol.

"Only on rare occasions."

"Are you an alcoholic?"

"No," Eric answered holding her free hand in his. The events had shocked him and he feared the worst that could have happened to her. Somehow holding her assured him she was safe and sound. His thumb traced the lines of her fingers in a rhythmic soothing. "I was in Russell's care at the age when you are supposed to be interested in parties and chasing girls. I was home schooled and I saw little appeal in it."

"You're not Bill's next recruit are you?" she sniggered for the first time being able to find some lightness in events transpired. Sookie could hardly imagine a man of Eric's looks still holding on to his V card.

He smirked at her, an expression that had annoyed her greatly before but which she was now glad to see return. "Far from it and Bill's hardly my type," he leered in jest. "Speaking of which you have yet to explain the sex smell in the bedroom."

She gulped down her bite of spaghetti audibly, the hand he held onto tried to escape his grasp but just like the answer she owed him it wasn't going anywhere.

"Shit," she offered sheepishly. "I hoped my story was distracting enough that you had forgotten about that." Eric merely responded with a demanding quirk of his eyebrow.

"Fine," she huffed out. "I may or may not have been entertaining a very excitable dream in my drunken state. Don't worry I'll change the sheets and sleep on the sofa from now on if you want me to."

Eric chuckled at her admission, if only she knew what he had been entertaining about her in his subconscious, never mind when he was conscious. It was all very excitable indeed.

"You're welcome to continue to make use of the bed," he said with a leisurely perusal of her body. "Are you still comfortable to have me in it?"

She nodded shyly, her face still flushed, only confirming to him that said dream had involved his presence and not that of the arrogant diplomat's son that had stolen her lips from him. The thought of that made him happier than he had been in months, perhaps even years.

**A/N: A little announcement: I'll be off on holiday for the next couple of weeks to a place where Wi-Fi will be shoddy at best. I'll see what I can do but it may happen that a week passes without an update or that it happens on a different day. **_**It's Already Gone**_** is the only story that will continue as scheduled seeing that it coincides with the show. For those impatient ones among you I suggest to read/catch up with another one of my stories while I'm gone or make sacrifices to the Wi-Fi gods and pray for good reception. I'll be back at work September 1****st**** so unless I catch Hep-V regular scheduling will commence from that point onwards. **


	10. Chapter 10 - Three Little Words

**A/N: A little bit of A+A aftermath first but that wraps up mid chapter and then we get back to investigations into the murder of Eric's family.**

"_Fine," she huffed out. "I may or may not have been entertaining a very excitable dream in my drunken state. Don't worry I'll change the sheets and sleep on the sofa from now on if you want me to."_

_Eric chuckled at her admission, if only she knew what he had been entertaining about her in his subconscious, never mind when he was conscious. It was all very excitable indeed._

"_You're welcome to continue to make use of the bed," he said with a leisurely perusal of her body. "Are you still comfortable to have me in it?" _

_She nodded shyly, her face still flushed, only confirming to him that said dream had involved his presence and not that of the arrogant diplomat's son that had stolen her lips from him. The thought of that made him happier than he had been in months, perhaps even years._

**Chapter 10 – Three Little Words**

Sookie would have been more embarrassed at her earlier admission but it had quickly turned around as she had caught Eric taking an extended sniff from the bedroom sheets. A small part of her liked to believe he had intended to be caught just to alleviate her constant state of embarrassment that he had lightly teased out of her during the rest of the night. Much to her consternation as terrible as Eric was at understanding the gist of common day expressions, he seemed to master the double entendre with far too much ease.

Despite sleeping the entire day away Sookie fell asleep instantly as soon as her head touched upon the pillow. She fell in a contented slumber happy to have Eric beside her again even if it did seem she had uncovered a perverted version of him. The currency of her flushing face only encouraging it to greater height. Only Eric knew it was her smile that he was working so hard for to uncover, the blushes were a mere bonus.

"Why'd you do it?" Eric whispered into her hair as she softly breathed in a steady rhythm that only nights seem to foster. It was still dim outside and would remain so for many hours in the long hours of darkness that characterise a Swedish winter.

"Do what?" she returned softly in a semi-conscious state. Her breathing rhythm changed as she exhaled a warmed lungful over his chest.

Eric didn't know if he would have the bravery at other moment to ask, to offer himself in vulnerability like this. He felt somewhat safe in the anonymity of the shadows and the warmth of her beside him so he chanced it, "Kiss him?"

Sookie shifted slightly seeking out the blindingly blue of his eyes in the dark. His question had roused her to full attention and she didn't intend to hide. She reached over for the light switch but his hand stalled hers. "Just get it over with," he begged with a hint of defeat.

"You left me all alone," she confessed with the same vulnerability that had accompanied his question. "But that's not why. I wish it was just that simple."

"Why then?"

"I thought…" she trailed off not sure where to look anymore but the palm of his hand directed her face back towards him. She saw the pain that was already there, that she unintentionally caused and refused to add further too. "I thought if I could with someone I didn't care for then I could do it for you. I want to be able to do it for you, be with you, but…"

"Bill," he answered knowingly.

"Yeah," Sookie whispered back shifting her head back into his chest where she felt safe and secure. "He took something from me. I need to get it back, it wouldn't be fair to you to be without it. It wouldn't be fair to us."

"To us?" he repeated softly but she barely heard as her breathing evened out as sleep overcame them both again.

Eric woke later than usual to an empty bed, the smells of breakfast having him quickly on his feet. The promises spoken to the night had him cheerful and expecting to find Sookie of equal mind. Instead he found a sobbing Sookie over the breakfast table clutching at the newspaper, ink staining her damp fingers. With her limited grasp of the language she could only make out every other word but it was enough to get what the headlines and pictures were portraying. Eric skimmed through the article quickly as tears continued to stream down her face with her inability to form words.

"Did you do this?" she finally asked through her cries that had her physically shaking.

"No," he answered in good conscience. "I never left your side last night. I'll be honest I'd considered seeking out the privileged prick but I'd never hurt him more than a punch to the face. Nothing like this."

"Ok," she returned meekly seeking out his embrace in an attempt to soothe her. "Can you tell me what it says?"

"Katrina Kurkova was found strangled to death by Amelia's maid. Both Amelia and Alcide are missing and they speculate they have either been kidnapped or killed and the killer didn't have time to get rid of Katrina before the maid arrived. It appears to be a home invasion gone wrong."

In a futile effort he tried to dry the tears with a napkin from the table but the waterworks continued despite his best efforts.

"The police are looking for this women who left the scene hours before the events transpired." Eric pointed to a blurry CCTV image that to their knowing eyes instantly recognised as Sookie.

"What are we going to do? Should I hide somewhere?"

"You used the Susanna alias correct?" She nodded immediately although it was no surprise to him, Sookie followed his lead quite easily in matters of their safety. "Your phone?"

"I pulled out the battery and SIM card like you showed me as soon as I saw the article."

"Good," He appraised. "I think we should consider going to the police."

"What?" Sookie was dumbfounded at the mere suggestion, she had been preparing mentally to pack her bags and hide in a bunker for the next months.

"You did nothing wrong and Amelia and Alcide's behaviour was peculiar to say the least. Right now you're the press' only lead. If you stay missing the speculation will surmount to epic proportions. They will find better photos of you on social media," Eric explained thoughtfully. "It's too dangerous; the story might reach the US considering Amelia is the daughter of a prominent American family. I'll retain a lawyer to protect your identity in the press and he'll be with you at the police station. As soon as the police rule you out of foul play they will move onto something else."

"This won't bring scrutiny on you or our identities?" she asked trying to take it all in.

"No. My alias connected to this home is strong, as is Susanna's. Only if they suspect us of terrorism will they be able to investigate us thoroughly enough and find some inconsistencies."

"So no Al Qaeda talk then?" she quipped with a small smile as her tears finally seemed to dry.

"You catch on quickly," Eric returned with a smile of his own. He kissed the top of her head softly before pulling the phone from his pocket. "I'm calling my lawyer."

"Can we trust him?" Sookie asked pensively holding onto his forearms with both hands, not ready to stand on her own again.

"Yes, he is the only person besides you that I have entrusted with my true identity," Eric replied while seeking out the private number on his phone.

"Fine, but I'm unleashing the full force of my ability on him when I meet him."

"I would expect nothing less," he smirked at her but soon switched to Swedish when his lawyer, Peder Falk, answered.

They spoke for some time where Eric was intermittently put on hold while he paced relentlessly down the full length of the apartment. When he finally hung up the phone he let out a sigh of relief as Sookie looked up to him with eyes filled with expectation.

"So far none of the news websites have any photos up and he's taking legal actions to prevent them from publishing any where you would be recognised. Worst case scenario you might have to do some interviews in exchange to retain your anonymity," he relayed to her.

"Ok, that's doable. What about the police?"

"We have an appointment with the lead detective in an hour. Peder is sending a car with tinted windows but I still want you to swaddle yourself like a mummy," Eric instructed in his commanding tone. "Apparently the press is latching on to this story like vultures. I will meet you at the underground parking at the station."

Sookie did as instructed and shrouded herself as much as possible. She met Peder in the car and found him to be very open and truthful. Eric had been right in trusting him and she was finally able to relax some after the morning's sudden events. Peder confided in her he was a childhood friend of Eric's and had accidentally recognised him a few years ago. Ever since he had been helping Eric where possible.

When they approached the underground parking garage Sookie ducked her head between her legs as instructed while the car was bathed in a barrage of flashlights. As promised Eric was waiting for her and she quickly latched on to him as they entered the building. Sookie was boiling up by the time she sat down in the detective's office and finally got rid of her improvised disguise of woollen shawls.

"I apologise for the press' scrutiny of your person, Ms. Tilbury," the detective offered while putting down the glass of water in front of her. "We do not get many sensational crimes like this here in Stockholm."

"I guess it can't be helped," Sookie replied politely. "Please call me Susanna."

"Then you must call me Björn," he smiled at her encouragingly. Sookie couldn't help note how polite and friendly everyone at the police station had been. When she thought of detective Andy Bellefleur back in her hometown of Bon Temps she doubted he would be so courteous to a Swedish girl tied up in a murder investigation.

After the detective had set up the recording equipment Sookie told her version of the evening's events and Peder had supplied the detectives with time stamped CCTV stills of Sookie arriving back in Eric's building absolving her of further investigation.

Her interview was nearly done when Björn's demeanour became more serious. "Now Susanna please know that whatever you answer to the next question that you will not be persecuted for it. This has been prearranged by your lawyer."

"Ok," Sookie answered uncertain what to expect next, Peder merely gave her an encouraging look to alleviate any nerves.

"Did you partake in any illegal substances?" Björn asked sternly. It reminded Sookie of her Gran's tone when she would interrogate Jason of exactly that when they were still teenagers.

"Gosh no. I don't do drugs," Sookie replied. "The closest I've been is an over the counter sleeping pill and that was a disaster. I fell over instantly."

The detective smiled at her endearing retelling but he had to be thorough. Carefully he asked, "Are there any blank spots in the evening, periods of time you have a hard time remembering?"

Sookie thought hard at his question before she replied, "Well I drank quite a bit, more than I normally would. My memories are a little hazy, especially around the time we left from the first club to the second but I think I've retained all my memories. It's hard to tell."

He looked at her sympathetically, which Sookie found a strange reaction from the detective considering her answer. Recognition or scrutiny would be expected but not pity.

She looked towards Eric to see if he made any sense of it but with that Sookie realised she was the only person in the room that noticed the rage that was boiling under Eric's stoic mask. However, she couldn't understand what lay at the cause of it. Fearing that her frank retelling of the events of her seemingly innocent evening out that had her kissing another man had him furious with her.

"Would you object to a drug test to ascertain there are no illegal substances in your system?"

Despite the rage that seemed to be fuelling Eric her uncertainty had her seeking out his non-verbal guidance. "I think you should do it," he spoke softly trying hard not to express his upset. Peder agreed with him without pause.

"I'm sure it's fine then Björn," Sookie offered as she started rolling up her sleeve.

"Ah no Susanna, you will have to go to the hospital for this. Perhaps you will need some other tests as well," he spoke cautiously. Sookie frowned a little at the thought of more tests but she trusted Eric would guide her where necessary.

On their way to the hospital Peder and Eric were conversing in Swedish leaving Sookie to apathetically stare out the window into the grey skies above as she digested her time at the police station. Luckily they had been spared the onslaught of paparazzi with their exit but the driver had taken several diversions to avoid being followed as an extra precaution.

"Did I do something wrong?" Sookie finally asked when Peder and Eric had come to a terse silence.

"No you did very well," Peder replied warmly. "We are both just worried for you."

"Don't," Eric spoke with warning towards his childhood friend.

"Tell me," Sookie demanded. Peder didn't dare say any more so Sookie's scrutiny travelled towards Eric.

He sighed knowing he owed her the truth even though he desperately wanted to shield her from it until it was no longer possible. He held her hand reassuringly as he spoke, "If certain trace amounts are found in your blood or urine they will insist to administer a rape kit. You have testified to not taking any illegal substances by choice. There are parts of the night you have no memory off."

The blood drained from her face. Sookie looked more fearful now than the moment Eric had pointed a gun at her.

"No," she whispered as Eric pulled her into his embrace where she quietly sobbed into his chest.

"We do not know anything for certain Susanna it could be nothing," Peder offered hopefully. The optimism his personality carried had initially warmed the lawyer to Sookie but now she couldn't care much for it.

"That's very sweet of you Peder," she sniffed as her manners refused to leave her even in face of such demoralising prospects. "But we both know the detective wouldn't be looking at me with such pity if this isn't what happened to Katrina."

Peder didn't deny her correct assessment, the public prosecutor had hinted exactly at that but he felt it unnecessary to upset his client needlessly.

Sookie was a nervous wreck as they administered the blood and urine test and took a hair sample. It became apparent to them both that someone had indeed slipped something into Sookie's drink when her results came back accompanied by a female police officer. She informed Sookie it was in her best interest to administer the rape kit. Sookie didn't hesitate to agree. The different tests took several hours to complete and Eric stayed with her when possible unfortunately protocol hardly allowed for his presence most of the time.

It was well past midnight when her doctor came back with conclusive results. Sookie had been lucky as there was no evidence of assault or sexual trauma. The dosage of GHB that had entered into her system had been high enough to disinhibit her sexually but not enough to cause black outs. The doctor commended her that she was able to resist her physical urges so well in such an involuntary state. Apparently holding on to her virginity for twenty-five years had proven a great preparation for that horrendous night.

After Eric informed Peder of the results Sookie practically skipped out of the hospital happily breathing in the cool night air.

"I don't think I've ever felt so alive," Sookie smiled up at the night sky, there wasn't a cloud in sight as the heavens were filled with the sight of stars.

"Any special requests?" Eric asked thinking they should mark the occasion somehow, to bring some levity to the seemingly unending doom that had characterised the endless hours of the day and early evening.

"Well I know we should really down an entire bottle of Champagne in a swanky sky bar but I don't want to see a drink for a long long time," she said swinging her arm back and forth taking his arm with her with childish glee. "Just take me home, I want to cuddle up in your arms and sleep the day away."

"Happy to oblige, min älskling," he said in the same cheer. The happy expression she had carried had given him cause to move, to mark her as his, to move his lips to hers. However, he ended up meeting the air as she had stopped dead in her tracks standing a meter behind, her face etched with apprehension. Held up by his choice of words.

"I'm sorry," Eric apologised thinking that the term of endearment was offending her, cursing himself for voicing what he called her in his mind. Thankfully the attempted kiss he had intended to plant on her had gone unnoticed. "I should not have used such a familiar term for you."

"No, Eric it's not your fault," she corrected instantly. "It's just _he_ used those words, 'happy to oblige', when he tried to you know. They belonged to you and he ruined them." Heavy tears had started falling from her eyes at the mere memory, the intent of the overly privileged couple so much more sinister than initially thought. That Katrina's fate could have been hers.

He pulled her into his embrace again hoping to offer her some sanctuary. She leaned in without thought finding safety in the rhythmic beating of his chest.

"How did you do it?" Eric asked absent minded as he stroked the long tresses of her hair. "How were able to resist your body's urges so well?"

Sookie looked up at him her eyes still glistening from her tear ducts' efforts. She sniffed a little before she spoke, "Well as you undoubtedly know by now I'm very head strong." He nodded with amusement at the double meaning of it. "Mostly it felt wrong, first because of Amelia and secondly… well secondly because of you."

"Me?" he asked genuinely surprised.

"Yes, you," she chided. "I promised you in Toronto another lifetime. I'm not there yet but I wasn't gonna diminish that with some random hook up despite my body's wishes." He couldn't stop the smile that was encroaching into his eyes.

"I'll wait for you," he said remembering her words of the early morning hours. "As long as it takes." Her heart warmed at the reverence of his statement. Though she longed to kiss him properly she left it at a chaste kiss to his cheek.

"Thank you," she whispered to his appreciative ear.

"And I'll happily grant any of your body's wishes while I wait," he leered at her playfully distracting her of the severity of the previously spoken words. Sookie could only laugh disapprovingly at his antics.

They went home and as promised Sookie went to rest snuggled in Eric's arms, per her body's wishes of course, as they both savoured their unexpected good fortune at another bullet dodged.

oOoOoOo

Sookie was spared the full onset of the media's coverage mostly in thanks to Peder's efforts. The press hadn't been able to identify her and lost interest with the police's statement that she had no connections to the crime. Sookie had spent the day after returning from the hospital in the shower repeatedly washing her hair to eliminate the brown hair dye. She wasn't back to her original colour but it was close enough.

The press had swiftly moved on to grainy stills of what appeared to be Amelia and Alcide fleeing the country on a ferry to Estonia. The speculation in the tabloids ran rampant with stories of satanic worshipping and orgies honouring Bacchus. Amelia being a known Wiccan didn't help reign in the speculation.

Under Peder's advisement Sookie stayed indoors as much as possible until the media storm died down. Luckily it would be Christmas in three weeks, which meant the Swedish press would revert back to their annual discussion on the American invasion on their traditional Christmas. In the meantime Eric had a hard time explaining to Sookie that watching Donald Duck cartoons on Christmas day was definitively a Swedish tradition.

It was on that same Christmas day that the story broke that Amelia and Alcide had been arrested while residing on a yacht in the south of France. Eric and Sookie had just exchanged gifts when detective _Björn called to _inform them before the media re-engaged in speculation again.

It had proven quite difficult for Sookie to shop for Eric's gift as she had been mostly bound indoors. She had however discovered the pleasures of online shopping. Much to Eric's delight Sookie had misjudged his size and the atrocious reindeer sweater would be returned. His wardrobe would remain decidedly black, navy and grey. He would, however, forever cherish the other gift she bought him. He had immediately put on the platinum chain with a small dented bullet as the pendant that rested by his heart. It was an edgy piece of jewellery but for them it held great significance that had nothing to do with fashion.

Eric had enlisted the help of Pam for Sookie's present, which meant she had an abundance of items she didn't really need. Most were to keep her teeth from chattering outside as the cold refused to settle in her Southern bones. The gift she cherished most was also the most inexpensive of the lot. It was a soft hand puppet of a wolf in sheep's clothing that he had chanced upon when asking for directions in a touristic shop in the north of town. Inside it held a card with Eric's distinctive handwriting.

_Never a lamb._

_-E._

Her eyes had spilled over with those three little words. To Sookie it symbolised her escape of Bill and Lorena's plans but also Eric's continued faith in her that even without his intervention she would not have fallen to their manipulations. At her attachment to the hand puppet Eric had taken to calling her Freki, after one of Odin's pet wolves, whenever her thieving hands were sneaking food from his plate again. She was not all that happy with the nickname when he had explained that Geri and Freki were given all the food on the table while Odin just sustained himself on wine. She had taken even more mock offense when he noted that Freki's name was derived from the Old Norse word for greedy.

It was a few days after New Year's that Eric's assumed murder theory was proven correct. He had speculated that Amelia and Alcide had upped the GHB dosage on Katrina after it seemed to prove ineffectual on Sookie. A medical complication would have caused her death to occur during rough sex. Indeed it had turned out that Katrina had an undiagnosed heart condition. Alcide had been choking her at the time and he and Amelia had immediately fled the scene through an unguarded back entrance after staging a break in. Alcide and Amelia were charged with sexual assault, manslaughter and a multitude of other charges.

Sookie's statement and test results were enough to keep her from testifying in court. Due to the media scrutiny there were several other women who had come forward unaware how they were victimised who happily stepped up into the limelights. Sookie happily left them to it, content in her reclusion with Eric in his apartment.

oOoOoOo

Olle Lindquist's death had been ruled an accidental suicide. Eric had initially ruled out foul play, as the only person who would be able to stage his death so accurately in the business would have been Talbot. Pam had confirmed to him that he had not left Russell's side since she had arrived in Greece. His investigations into his uncle had proven to him that though his death had been a suicide it was not accidental.

The clues Eric found were small but significant. His most decisive evidence was his uncle's detachment to Halina. While he visited dutifully at the same time each year for thirteen consecutive years he stopped taking her mail and diverted all care decisions to her trust suddenly. To the investigators of Olle's case this was seen as an expected reaction to a further degenerating parent living far away from a man who was getting on in age himself. The investigators hardly had the time to spare pursuing their case load as it was. The investigation was quickly sealed up when the coroner deemed the death most likely accidentally induced.

Eric picked up the clues to confirm his suspicions with relative ease. His uncle's internet browser's history showed research in the specific lethal combination of over the counter medications and alcohol. Olle had cleared his history but had not manually removed the data which Eric had easily retrieved.

His presence in the nation's capital was also off. The officials had blindly accepted his attendance to a model train convention. Eric had found no evidence of his uncle's supposed 'hobby' in his home in Philadelphia. There wasn't a single train related item in the house.

Lastly he discovered his uncle's extensive will, that had instructions for his estate to go to a number of different carefully selected charities, had been replaced three years ago with a testament that left everything to his mother or her heirs if she was deceased before him. Considering he was the only known heir to his mother's fortune it was a strange choice indeed.

In the past Eric had suspected his uncle as the initiator of the hit on his own family in an attempt to seize all the family's fortunes. It was an easy theory to make in the early days. Since then he had dismissed the theory, as they would have been the actions of a man desperate for money and waiting out the death of Halina would be a lengthy process and another hit on her life would have incriminated him instantly as the only heir to a vast fortune. His uncle also showed no signs of any addictions or lacking in any funds, the primary motivators for such actions. There had been no strife in family relations even though Eric had seen little of the man in his own youth.

Olle had never married or engaged in any known relationships. He kept to himself, though his neighbours considered him polite and courteous. Eric had suspected his uncle might have been gay but uncomfortable to be defined by it in the conservative field of his profession.

Sookie had theorised that his death in Washington DC was significant; she even hypothesised that it was a message to Eric or Russell. To choose to end his life in Eric's new hometown. Though Eric found no evidence of it, he assumed his uncle's suicide was a decision to take control in lieu of his death at the hands of another.

Eric had discovered one of his uncle's university friends was now teaching international law at the University in Stockholm. It had been one of Sookie's rare outings during her seclusion period. Sookie had pretended to be one of his students and had probed the man under the guise that Olle Lindquist had been a good friend of her grandfather's.

Professor Holmström shared Eric's ambiguity on Olle's sexuality but had never seen it confirmed one way or the other. He had regaled some stories over some mischief they had gotten themselves into. Sookie regretted that Eric never got to know the man when they seemed to live so close to each other. He seemed such a likeable person from the stories of the professor.

When Sookie probed for specific information relating to any Americans she discovered Olle had spent one summer with his mother and an unknown American sailing the Mediterranean after his second year of university.

Olle Lindquist's life was expressed through a quiet sense of dignity and unremarkable events. Aside from the summer in the Mediterranean there were no significant leads for further investigation.

oOoOoOo

Halina had offered little insight in her rare moments of awareness either. Now that Sookie was blonde again Halina had taken a greater liking to her. Whenever Eric was perceived as her son in law, Ulfrick, he received the brunt of her temper but he enjoyed her company nonetheless.

Goderick had proven useful again when he revealed to Sookie that Halina had confided in him once that the family cabin in Gotland was still in her mother's name. Halina's mother hadn't been all that fond of her son in law either. The cabin had been a wedding present but Halina's mother had refused to put the deeds in her son in law's name. Halina had equally refused to put the cabin in her name without her husband's by its side so it had never changed ownership.

When Halina's mother passed she had snubbed Eric's grandfather for the last time in her will where she had disallowed her son in law ownership of the cabin through a maze of legal measures. Halina in her anger had put the title deed of the cabin in the name of Pippi Longstockings Ltd.

When she relayed the amusing story back to Eric she hadn't realised it was of any significance until he had disappeared into his cave only to resurface minutes later. The documents he had unearthed showed that the cabin had never been listed as part of her holdings when Olle and the trust took up her guardianship.

"You never noticed it was missing from the inventory?" Sookie asked surprised, Eric never missed the smallest of details.

"No," he replied. Though this information was only raising more questions Sookie immediately recognised the excitement it unearthed in Eric's eyes. "I never knew there was a family cabin in Gotland."

"Maybe she sold it?"

"Perhaps. I will have to look into my great-grandmother's will to chart the passing of ownerships."

"Is there some sort of registry?"

"Not for wills, but there is for property and land rights," he replied.

"The safe deposit box?" she offered remembering it held a whole set of official looking documents that Eric had taken little interest in beyond a quick scan.

"Yes, it's time to pull out Pernille again," he grinned as she was already waving the identification papers of that identity in her hands.

Much to Eric's relief a copy of the will was residing in the safe deposit box. He took the whole stack of papers with him this time even if most looked to be uninteresting. The property address had been listed and a quick check on the Lantmäteriet website confirmed it was still in the name of Pippi Longstock Ltd.

After investigating through several legal loopholes with the help of Peder Falk, Eric managed to trace the ownership of Pippi Longstock Ltd. to a holding company in Gibraltar. The contact person for the holding company was none other than Desmond Cataliades. There was no paper trail but Eric could only assume that this was tied to his grandmother's secret secondary trust.

When Eric had met with Desmond Cataliades through the introduction of Sophie Anne Leclerq he had quickly assessed that he was the kind of lawyer you hired when you needed to bury your tracks. His nickname 'the demon' had little to do with an affinity for speed. No it was related to his lack of questioning of morals and his own scheming wiles. Despite his profession he never stood in a courthouse, his legal services were more akin to a notary service for the criminal underworld.

The lawyer specialised in setting up frameworks to skirt the legal extents of the law to retain anonymity and limit detectability. His clients were rich, very rich. The wealth may have been accumulated legally or not; Cataliades was indiscriminate to its origins. Money talked. Eric had discovered that first hand when meeting the lawyer. He had to retain his legal services to receive any information on his grandmother's trust.

The only area that Cataliades was discriminate with was in the manner of contracting clients. One only became a customer of the lawyer through the recommendation of two existing contacts. Sophie Anne's close relation as his goddaughter had given Eric access through just the one.

Professionally the lawyer would not have been allowed to reveal any information on his clients. Desmond Cataliades however subscribed to his own set of rules. Silence was bought not warranted. Whoever paid the most got what they wanted.

Halina's trusts had been set up when she had first been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. She had set up a different trust in Sweden to manage her day to day affairs, where her two children and a professional trust manager acted as the trustees. With Desmond Cataliades she had set up a secondary trust. Halina had apparently been shrewd when talking to the demon; she gave specific instruction but never motivated her choices. She was well aware the lawyer excelled at what she required of him but that his lips were for sale. Thus she kept hers tightly sealed in his presence, revealing only what was necessary.

The only information that Cataliades had been able to relay to Eric was that the trust's existence was only to be revealed upon Halina's death and would then be taken over by the Swedish trust.

As much as Cataliades's silence could be bought or sold the contents of his files were not. Eric had considered flying Sookie in to probe the lawyer however the presence of Sophie Anne hindered it at the time. He had set up an appointment when Cataliades would be in Monaco in a few weeks' time where the demon was set to visit a few of his discerning Russian clientele. Eric reasoned he would be able to bring Sookie along at such time, without the risk of exposing her to Sophie Anne.

That was two weeks away from now giving them plenty of time to investigate the cabin in Gotland. Chances were they wouldn't find anything of interest there but at this point they could leave no stone left unturned. Eric had spared no time in booking two tickets to the large touristic island an hour's flight away to the south of Stockholm.

Sookie had trailed the Internet in search of accommodation near the cabin finally convincing Eric of a small guesthouse that resembled Villa Villekulla. She only found it fitting, considering that the cabin was in Pippi Longstocking's name. He preferred the anonymity of a hotel seeing that they would be breaking into the cabin. However, the hotels on the island would be deserted in the midst of winter so it was hardly going to offer more cover than a small inn.

They arrived at the guesthouse in the late evening in their rental car. The proprietor introduced herself as Babette Frisk. She was dressed in all black with a white lace shrug over her shoulders.

"You two are newly married?" she asked with a genteel smile when Eric was filling in the forms required to check in.

"Gosh no. Eric and I aren't married," Sookie uttered before Eric could intervene.

"I am sorry I cannot keep your reservation then," she replied her face kind face instantly clouding over to a judgemental one. Sookie was at a loss what had just happened fearing she had unknowingly offended the woman somehow.

"Perhaps you have a room with separate beds?" Eric tried knowing full well the women's dress represented her to be a pious Lutheran and the source of her discrimination.

"I can offer you two single rooms which share a bathroom," she said with a discerning look.

"Fine," Eric replied his annoyance not reserved in his tone. "We will leave tomorrow don't bother with breakfast." He grabbed the keys from the woman's hand not wanting anything to do with her as Sookie merely trailed behind his swiftly departing form with confusion.

When they settled in to their rooms Eric had explained the reason for their separate sleeping arrangements and their need to seek out new accommodations the next day. The elderly woman could not in good conscious of her religion allow unmarried people to cohabitate together. Sookie had nearly lost it at the incredulousness of it; she had considered her native South as deeply conservative but had not expected to meet it here. Apparently as liberal and atheistic as most Swedes were it seemed that the religious resided on the edge of extremism in contrast.

They brushed their teeth side by side and bid each other an awkward goodnight in the bathroom that separated their sleeping quarters. Neither one content with the prospect of sleeping alone.

In spite of the late hour and tire of the travel Eric found it difficult to succumb to sleep. The prospect of what the cabin could reveal kept his mind overly active. Despite his extensive research over the years, the evidence he had gathered with the help of Sookie in the shortened time period had him more successful at finding a motive than ever before. However, a smoking gun was still sorely lacking. His hope was small, but he kept it alive nonetheless that the cabin would provide a new insight. He was going through the various scenarios again when he heard a creak coming from the bathroom door accompanied with a sharp shaft of light creeping into the room.

"Eric are you asleep?" Sookie whispered into the darkness of his room.

"No. What are you doing here?" he asked as he heard her feet pad over the wooden boards in the darkness.

"I can't sleep. Can I lie with you for a bit?" He pulled the covers up in response and she quickly slid in beside him as they barely managed to squeeze together on the single bed.

"I can't believe we ended up under the roof of Sweden's only religious nut," Sookie huffed out in annoyance as she curled up into his chest.

"I think we can safely say Mrs Frisk is hardly frisky," Eric noted dryly. She laughed at his terrible attempt at a joke though she could find little humour in their situation.

"Can I stay here? I mean you don't have to. I know it's cramped..."

"Stop rambling. I'll never say no to you sleeping in my arms, but I can't be held accountable for your safety. Here put your head on my arm," he indicated by pulling her waist towards him so they were both moderately comfortable and securely held within the bed.

"Thank you Eric," she said as she placed a soft kiss on his bicep and exhaled a contented sigh.

"You're welcome," he replied as he kissed the top of her head inhaling the ocean breeze that still lingered in her hair.

…

…

…

**A/N: We'll pick up next time exactly where we left off. Hopefully within a week or two at most.**

**Thanks to whoever made sacrifices to the WiFi gods on my holiday address, it is still holding strong. I hope it was Noomi or Sarah N. (now that she's cured Eric her number is up as far as I'm concerned, preferably before Bill changes his mind) and no cute little lambs were harmed.**

**I am still officially on holidays so updates will come when they come. I am sticking to the order in which I usually release them so Bonfire of the Vanities will be the next to receive an update sometime this week... It's Already Gone will be updated on Sunday as usual.**


	11. Chapter 11 - Oppurtunity

"_Eric are you asleep?" Sookie whispered into the darkness of his room._

"_No. What are you doing here?" he asked as he heard her feet pad over the wooden boards in the darkness. _

"_I can't sleep. Can I lie with you for a bit?" He pulled the covers up in response and she quickly slid in beside him as they barely managed to squeeze together on the single bed._

"_I can't believe we ended up under the roof of Sweden's only religious nut," Sookie huffed out in annoyance as she curled up into his chest. _

"_I think we can safely say Mrs Frisk is hardly frisky," Eric noted dryly. She laughed at his terrible attempt at a joke though she could find little humour in their situation. _

"_Can I stay here? I mean you don't have to. I know it's cramped..."_

"_Stop rambling. I'll never say no to you sleeping in my arms, but I can't be held accountable for your safety. Here put your head on my arm," he indicated by pulling her waist towards him so they were both moderately comfortable and securely held within the bed. _

"_Thank you Eric," she said as she placed a soft kiss on his bicep and exhaled a contented sigh._

"_You're welcome," he replied as he kissed the top of her head inhaling the ocean breeze that still lingered in her hair. _

**Chapter 11 - Opportunity**

"Eric do you ever wonder if we just lost our window of opportunity?" Sookie asked, her voice muffled by the nearness of his chest.

"How so?"

"Well look at us, we're cramped together in a small single bed in each other's arms completely at ease. This is probably the most intimate relationship I've ever been engaged in yet the closest we've come is a near kiss."

"You worry the loss of a sexual component?" he questioned, his tone was soft as he purposefully did not wish to express any pressure on that matter in their fragile relations.

"No not really," Sookie sighed. "I mean I never really understood the big hoopla about sex. It's more the closer we're bound; the comfort found in that. At some point it might be too good to risk it all for the potential loss of it."

"I think we will be good together," he spoke with deference.

"How can you be so sure?" she asked her hesitation evident in her voice.

"Like you said this is the most intimate relationship you have ever been in. I would say the same goes for me," he answered letting the silence in the room settle with the statement. He continued to assure her, "It is enough for me for now. I think it could even be enough if we never have sex. I enjoy being with you, I like who I am around you."

Sookie smiled contentedly into the darkness. "I like who I am around you too," she spoke with a soft whisper. "You would really abstain from sex to be with me?"

"Abstain? No, I might seek out a helping hand now and then."

Sookie tried to stifle her shock unsuccessfully as she seethed, "You'd seek out other women?"

"No I would literally seek out my own hand," Eric replied his amusement at her jealously dancing through his words.

"Oh," she uttered trying desperately to swallow her earlier ire. "When was the last time you know, with a woman?" Sookie asked fuelled by her insecurities.

"Before I met you."

She pondered about his dedication to her. Granted they spent almost all of their time together in close quarters. Still he could have easily gone off and sought relations but he didn't. He chose to be by her side even if it would seem that she were never to share her body with his.

"At what point did you decide you wanted to be with me?"

"When you stole my bacon and I let you," he said with a smile in reminiscence of those early morning hours after the scuffle that was their first time meeting and were well on their way enacting a plan to see to her safety.

"Huh?" she asked inelegantly. "Yet you draw the line at hot sauce."

"I do have my limits," Eric chuckled at her affinity to his self-described battery acid whose invasion of his shared breakfast he had fought admirably before continuing in a more serious tone. "I don't share well. Never have," he shrugged. "I share with you, I bared my soul to you and you don't judge me for what darkness it contains."

"Because it's beautiful," she interjected. "All of you; flaws and all."

"Some would describe that as love."

They both remained silent at his implication.

"Why are you so fearful of sex?" he probed as it became apparent neither would fall asleep after his previous statement had been unleashed into the room.

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "My experience with it is limited. I just don't want our future to be hinged upon it."

"Was your relationship with Bill defined by it?"

She furrowed her brows at the mention of the man who had deceived her heart so. "In a sense yes. I told him I was inexperienced and he never pressured me. At the time I thought it was sweet, now I know better of course. Then he proposed to me when we'd only known each other for a little over a month."

"That message would have left little room for interpretation."

"Yes, though I never told him I was saving myself for marriage," she said from memory. "I thought it odd at the time but if you don't account for my ability, that is the unspoken assumption of why a woman would still be a virgin in her mid-twenties."

"Why did you agree to marry him then?"

"I didn't at first, I told him I needed time to consider his proposal. It was the reaction of my friends and family that got me to accept."

"I thought they were disapproving of Bill," Eric stated with mild confusion.

"Yes, they were especially when he proposed," she sighed. "My brother was insulted being passed over as the man of the family. Bill had met him once and it had hardly been cordial so he hadn't sought out my brother's approval. He didn't think much of Jason and the feeling seemed mutual. I thought time would sort that out…"

The sadness in her voice had him rubbing soft circles on her upper back catching a stray strand of her soft hair now and then. She gave him a small smile and even in the limited light he caught it and returned it.

"Tara and Lafayette didn't trust him," Sookie recalled of her two closest friends. "Lafayette was convinced he had a secret family, that I would be a second wife on the down low. Bill told me Lafayette being the only gay man 'out' in a fifty mile radius made him project his own life on mine. It made sense. So I believed Bill."

Eric kissed her softly at the crown of her head as she steeled herself to explain the events of her past that lived in such different light now that Bill's betrayal had been revealed to her by the man that held her with more sympathy than anyone ever had.

"My relationship with Tara was already deteriorating over the fallout of her own relationship. I was convinced, mostly impressed upon by Bill, that Tara couldn't share my happiness as she had none of her own." A small pause stopped the tears she didn't wish to shed over the man of her past any longer. "My boss Sam Merlotte had been harbouring unrequited feelings for me for years. He had been a great friend but he acted like the jilted lover at the news of my possible engagement." Her own face softened again as she found the compassion that he always held for her in those bluest of eyes.

"I defended Bill to them all and I thought that _that_ was love. So I agreed to marry him even though we had been on one date and physically seen each other nine days in total. I placated myself that my Gran would have been excited for us had she still been alive."

She let out a deep sigh, one of many that night as heavy disappointment lamented her body with her past actions.

"You were being manipulated," Eric soothed whilst moving the hair around her face to tuck it behind her ear.

"I was lying to myself because I was greedy for something I never thought I could have. Something I never deserved as the town freak."

"Do you still believe that?" he asked pointedly.

"No. You tried to kill me and you didn't. You helped me when you didn't have to. I'm helping you and I don't have to," Sookie said with conviction. "We're even; we're not bound by obligation. We are both here at this point in time because we want to be right here. You've made me see my worth; I'm not a freak. I deserve whatever I desire out of life not simply what stumbles across my path."

"I stumbled across your path," he observed.

"Yes, yet I _chose_ to walk along beside you on your path."

"You've tied your faith to an assassin yet sex is what frightens you," he noted dryly. If the subject matter had not been so serious this statement would surely have amused Eric.

"Sex doesn't frighten me, the loss of this is," she said pointing back and forth at the air between them.

"I understand," he acknowledged as his fingers trailed through the heavy mane of her hair. "However what does hoopla mean?"

"The fuzz, the excitement," she explained.

Eric pondered the definition. "You find no excitement in sex?"

"Well it's nice and all, but considering the time it seems to occupy everyone. The talk about it, it just doesn't measure up to the reality of it," she shrugged.

"I think Bill didn't measure up."

"What? No it was fine, normal sex, it just wasn't this porntastic vision everyone seems to morph it into."

"You've been doing it wrong," he said with authority.

"How would you know? You weren't even there," Sookie rebuked almost childlike.

"He left you wanting. Your testy defence speaks volumes. Did you ever orgasm with him, did he attend to your needs?" Eric didn't really need to hear the answer to know. He feared that Compton had most likely broken her in like a common whore where skills were only cultivated to please the man she was servicing.

"I'm not answering that," she said with gritted teeth.

"We have our answer then."

She huffed in annoyance at his expert sense of uncovering her hidden truths. "It's not a big deal, not every woman is always capable of that," she returned lamely.

While Eric knew that was not a false truth he also knew that this did not apply to Sookie. He had smelt her release among the sheets and while it may have been accelerated by a dosage of GHB it was evident Sookie was quite capable herself where Bill was not.

"I could make you come without so much as touching you," he whispered suggestively into her ear. Even though it sent shivers down her spine she wasn't going to let him have the upper hand over her in that moment as it awakened her innate recalcitrance.

"Pray tell Viking Sex God how you are going to achieve this?" she said, the sarcasm dripping from her voice as she tried to deflect the charging atmosphere.

"Why should I tell you when I can show you," he retorted evenly.

Nerves were catching up with her bravado though Sookie was unsure whether they were caused by anticipation or the thought of it not happening at all.

"Eric, I…." she trailed off unsure what she wanted to say. Unsure what she wanted from him.

"I'll stop. I'm sorry," he said while loosening his hold on her. "I should not have pushed you where you are uncomfortable."

"Don't," she whispered so softly he almost didn't hear it as she lifted her eyes to his to make him understand her intent. "Please, show me."

"You are sure?" he asked as the words almost caught in his throat with the possibility.

"Yes," she returned in the same hushed voice that had his groin needy with the strain. "But if at any point…"

"I will stop and we will never speak of it again," he interrupted her words of concern.

"Ok. How do you want to do this?" she enquired unsure as her body was battling the nerves and heat of what was to come.

"Get undressed and lay on the bed," Eric instructed while he removed himself from their loose embrace before positioning himself beside it.

She hesitated and before Eric could ask if Sookie wanted to stop she admitted, "I'm not comfortable with being naked… yet." That last word encompassed so much promise to him it made it difficult to constrain his already hardening erection.

"Be as bare as you dare," he smirked at her as the darkened room filled with the soft light from a standing lamp in the corner. Sookie could make out his form, as he could hers, but not much more than that and she found comfort in that.

She sniggered a little at his ridiculous rhyme as she shyly removed herself from under the covers. Sooki looked at him finding his penetrating gaze across the room as she dropped her pyjama pants to the floor, stepped out of them and lifted her shirt over her head. Her hair fell back down in cascading waves around her face, the ends tickling the top of her breasts. It had not been a sensual striptease she simply stood before him in her bra and panties. Black lace with satin panels that caught with a shimmer in the dimmed lighting of the room highlighting the elegant curves of her soft body.

She stood in offering to him but nothing like the sacrificial virgin she had been groomed to be by the deceiving fiancé whose intentions were only of the sinister variety. Before him stood a woman, in her own right, that sought her own pleasure with hooded eyes.

Sookie considered removing her bra but decided she wasn't ready for that yet. It was a barrier of protection so close to her heart that needed to remain until the day she could give herself to him fully. She returned to the bed lying upon the covers. Her own increased body heat provided enough warmth in the chilly night air to lay so exposed.

"Beautiful," he said reverently gazing at the sight before him as he stood at the end of the bed. "Open your legs for me."

She hesitated once again but with the thought that he would not touch her she spread her legs towards the sides of the bed. He removed the soft grey t-shirt over his own head, hair flouncing back in place as he tossed it behind him. He left his sleeping pants on in effort to mask his evident excitement. This was about her pleasure and he did not want to scare her unnecessarily. She grazed the expanse of his chest appreciatively with her eyes. She had never been attracted to the bulk of muscles before but his lean physique was breath taking and he revelled in her appreciation of him.

"Close your eyes," he requested, supplementing when she seemed to hesitate again. "It will enhance your other senses."

At his explanation she closed the lids upon her eyes softly even though the thought of not knowing what to expect frightened her a little. The trust she held for him, however, gave her the confidence to relinquish that control to him. Her breath hitched when she felt his body weight indent the mattress in the space between her legs. His hands landed beside her as his body caged over hers, by his careful allowance nowhere did their bodies meet. Eric's presence was clearly felt except in the truly physical as his face hovered over hers.

"It all starts with a kiss," he spoke sensuously with his lips hovering a hair's breadth over hers. Sookie swore she could feel them upon her but her nerve endings registered no touch only a buzzing energy that had her wetting her lips with her tongue nearly wetting him in the process.

"My lips have wanted nothing but to touch these since I first laid my eyes upon them. Crash mine upon them softly stroking them with my tongue watching them swell plump and full pulling them into my mouth." In response she caught her bottom lip with her blunt teeth as she imagined he was doing just that.

He moved his face up, guided by the tip of his exploratory nose so close to her skin but never making contact as his hot breath travelled in companion over her heating flesh before his lips hovered over one of her closed eyes.

"My lips would kiss upon the lids of your eyes. For these beautiful brown eyes specked with an amber glow looked upon me as I was revealing my truth and all I found was mercy. These compassionate eyes warmed a cold heart that thought it would never beat with warmth again." She remembered that moment in her old car as his hand rested on top of hers in comfort and companionship as he revealed the course of actions in his life that had her showing up on her doorstep with a gun. Never had her ability been discerned as welcome like that by anyone before.

He hovered his head to the opposite side of her face, his lips moving over the other eyelid where he took a short pause as she registered the direction of his movements before finding her ear.

"These auricles have heard more than they ever should, yet they grant anyone the kindness of your heart," he spoke huskily into the shell of her ear. The warmth of his breath only heating them further. "I would languish for their care with soft caresses and nibbles on your lobes till they flush the colour of crimson."

His heated words did not fail to achieve the same effect without his physical touch. He was glad to note her heart rate was increasing at his attentions as her breaths became shorter, not quite panting.

Eric ventured down tracing the path of her nervously palpating veins that thrummed with excitement. He grazed the tip of his nose over her ever heating skin contacting only the finest of hairs that stood up with excitement as he audibly inhaled the scent of peaches emanating from her neck.

"The first time I took in your scent I almost came undone. It took every ounce of restraint not to kiss you over and over again until we would pass out from lack of oxygen. You smell like peach blossoms after a spring shower and when you're warm like this I swear I can smell the ripe peaches of summer." Once again her breath caught as she was unable to discern where his attentions were leading to next.

He exhaled his hot breath over her pronounced clavicles while marvelling at the delicacy of those bones aching to touch. Her body was already starting to glisten as she started to transpire with the smallest beads of moisture. She whimpered as he moved his face away from her body to reposition himself further down. He sat kneeling as he placed his hands over hers cupping them without contact.

"From your first touch, all I've wanted is for the pads of these dainty fingers to graze all over my naked skin. Fluttering over my body digging your nails into my back in the throes of exertion not caring that they draw blood. Holding on to me for dear life as my dick finds refuge in the heat of your pussy."

Sookie startled with the suddenness of the words in conjunction of his warm breath blowing up and down her body between her breasts and down her stomach and over her panties clad mound. The moisture that had begun pooling there and the gust of his exhalation only tantalised her further.

"So responsive," he noted pleased as her skin broke out in goose bumps as he settled to hover over her breasts.

"Now the times I have spent contemplating these beautiful breasts is frankly, a little shameful." She laughed at his admission, which only made her breasts bounce ever so enticingly across her chest. "See even now they taunt me. I will not rest easy tonight, I can assure you that. All I want is to caress them with my hands, hold them, cup them and squeeze them. Now I see they are even more magnificent than in my imaginings." He grazed dangerously close over the periphery of her rounded breasts dipping in the valley between intermittently. Flushing her chest to the most magnificent pink he had ever beheld in the process. The tip of his nose incidentally picked up a growing bead of sweat only for it to drop down on her body startling her over and over again.

"I want to bathe them with my tongue. Suckle on your nipples, stain them with my cum and sweat. Tell me do those enticing buds match the colour of your lips?"

She was desperately trying to answer a question she had never contemplated herself. Yes she had looked at her breasts in a mirror once or twice, fondled them in a heated moment but for the life of her she never contemplated their colouring in relation to her other body parts. Eric seemed to be hovering unmoved until he received an answer. Desperate for him to continue her worked up state she said the first thing that came to her.

"I don't know Eric," she all but snapped at him. "It's not like I ever held a paint swatch next to them."

He chuckled at her answer and her building frustration. Eric ventured forth, his face now resting over her waist where his hands rested beside them by the indentation of her curves. In the process he contorted his body with some difficulty to remain firmly on the bed. His erection rested painfully against his own stomach but he ignored the need that was weeping it purple with the lack of action it received.

"You have the most beautiful waist, soft and pliable. Something for my fingers to latch on to as you ride my stiff cock. It is where you have invited my hands every night in bed as I bask in your sweet embrace. It is the favourite place of my hands on your body. That is until I get to dig them in your sweet bountiful ass."

Sookie pulled her feet towards her in eagerness opening herself up wide to him, her legs bending at the knee to allow him more access. He moved himself to kneel at the foot of the bed grinding his own erection into the side of the mattress for some much needed friction as he gazed down where her underwear disappeared into the folds of her behind.

His face stood to worship by her nearly bare ass as he placed his hands through her opened legs laying millimetres from the rounded cheeks he desperately wished to grasp.

"I will mercilessly enter you from behind over and over again until your screams rub your throat raw. I will lay inside you so deep, fill you so fully you'll never feel whole again without my cock inside of you. And you will come, over and over again. Not because I tell you to, but because I will make it so." The commanding tone of his voice had her clenching the internal muscles of her sex involuntarily and she moaned with the promise of such release.

He took another audible sniff as he watched her pooling arousal spread further through the cloth of her panties. The scent of peach nectar wafted his nostrils which had his own erection twitching in the anticipation of it all. He took a ragged breath to sustain himself as he continued to rub himself on the edge of the bed.

"And make no mistake about it. When you let me in you will let me in _everywhere. _That sweet little mouth of yours will be begging to swallow down my seed. This little puckered rosebud," he spoke as while blowing his breath onto the crease of her posterior and moving his hands back and forth in their periphery as if her were kneading the bountiful flesh. "will open up and flower with me in inside, so you will feel the extreme pleasure of every nerve ending in your body set alight while I relentlessly rub your clit as your dripping cunt coats our thighs."

Sookie let out a strangled cry at his words as the warm feelings in her loins continued to build up a pressurized ache begging for release. She had never felt so wanton or wet before as she ached for his touch to be real. The acts he was describing had always seemed so reprehensible but as he offered it to her it stirred a need and a want to experience just that with him. She started to move her own hand towards her clit seeking release but before she managed to, he interrupted her.

"Ah, ah. No touching that goes for you too," he admonished.

She huffed in frustration too upset to even unleash angry words upon him. He only watched in sweet victory of his effect on her body as she twitched with the pent up frustration. It was all the payback he needed for how her body had plagued his for over the past few months as far as he was concerned.

"Now for what lies beyond this delectable piece of lace," he announced as hovered over her mound. "Tell me are you blonde all over?"

Her stomach was coiling in its expectation of a promised release and his delaying tactics were provoking her to no end. Desperate for friction she clenched and released the muscles that stimulated her internal walls. All she could manage was another strangled cry as she broke out into more sweats. Eric decided to further stall knowing it to make her release that much greater.

"I am," he offered when she still hadn't managed to answer. "Wouldn't you like to feel those curly hairs as you fondle my balls in your hands as you stroke up and down my shaft ready to take me in your mouth."

"Ah," she sobbed. No longer able to release comprehensive speech, in lieu of a verbal answer she slowly lifted her behind and pulled down the top of her underwear slightly to show him the blonde down that nestled at the top.

"I guessed correctly then," he hummed contentedly letting the tip of his nose graze over the protruding hairs. It only further enflamed her overly sensitized body as he rested above the entrance that held so much promise to him. Her shortened breaths started to evolve into little pants as she awaited what was next. "Now in this cornucopia is where I will perform my best work. My tongue will lapse at the juices that flow so freely with my mere words, flick at that hidden pearl, stroke your inner walls. My fingers will dance inside; opening you up, stretching you beyond," he continued as he moved his body back up onto the bed caging her small form again. Speech was becoming difficult for him to maintain as he began to pant with equal need. Hoarsely he continued his speech beside her ears, "I am by no means small." This was further enunciated as his whole body settled over hers just out of grasp which has her shivering in anticipation.

"I will seek out that special spot that feels like the tip of your nose with the torturous taunt of my fingers as I swallow that nub till you scream for me to stop. And I won't stop till my face is wet with your spending's of which I'm sure the taste is unparalleled to anything else in this world."

His face was now resting just above hers as he enunciated every word with heat and promise, spinning them both up to unchartered heights.

"I am very hard," he spoke lowly in his throat as he mustered the courage to stop himself from doing of what he spoke next. "My dick is straining to dig itself in to you."

The tension inside Sookie was almost becoming too much, her tear ducts glistened her eyes with the strain. She swore she could feel the tip of his erection pouncing at her entrance. "I would build you up slowly lingering in the tightness of your slick walls. Easing myself in further down till all of me is inside of you. Inch by inch, and there are many I promise you this. I would rock back and forth taking you with me as you lift your hips in response." With that she unconsciously started rocking her hips in accordance of the promised dance of their bodies as hers became desperate for any form of friction although direct contact was still carefully denied to her. Eric knew she was close as was he.

"Open your eyes," he spoke softly against her lips. They slowly uncovered themselves as they locked on to his, both of theirs storming with equal lust and hunger. With the sight of him so close in combination of the mimicking of the movements and the reverberation of his words, her breath hitched as she increased the internal massage of her sex as it began to flutter on its own accord. In shock of the sensation that descended upon her she screamed out her release when she barely caught her breath again. His mission complete all rules were lost as he ground his straining cock into the stiff fabric of her panties scalding him in temporary heat. Grunting out with the last of her screams that were reignited with the shared friction of their joining as his cock gushed out stream upon stream of his semen against the strain of his pants and the soft receptacle that was her flesh. He collapsed on top of her body as she wrapped her hands around him tightly, unwilling for him to move again now that she felt all of him where it had been denied for so long.

The room filled with the cacophony of their strangled breaths, the evidence of their well spent releases. He lay atop her heavily panting, though he was quick to pull the weight of his body from her. Their shared bliss was interrupted by a poking broom handle coming from underneath them accompanied by the disapproving shouts of a Mrs Frisk.

They sniggered at their discovery like two naughty children caught with their hands in a cookie jar. When Eric tried to shush her when Sookie's laughs were becoming increasingly loud which only further encouraged the disapproving woman downstairs with her protests he quickly retreated to the bathroom before the woman decided to knock on their door. The creaking of the floorboards seemed to do the job as the continual poking from below seized alongside the incensed words of the judgemental old crone.

With great stealth he re-joined Sookie in the bed again cleaned up in a fresh pair of boxers and carrying a damp cloth for her. Gratefully she took it from him as she carefully washed herself as much as she could under the covers. Her panties were a lost cause at this point and she had carefully exchanged them for her pyjama pants under the cover of the bedding when Eric had disappeared into the bathroom.

"Eric?" she asked softly as she snuggled her back into his chest.

"Yes, my voracious goddess."

She couldn't help but chuckle with his posturing. "You were right, I was doing it completely wrong."

"Glad to be of service," he said as he placed a soft kiss on the crook of her neck. His arm rested over her waist while fingers found each other to intertwine. Content and satiated they held each other in the intimate embrace that comforted them both to near sleep.

"Goodnight Eric."

"Godnatt min älskling. Sov så gott dröm något sött." (_Good night,__my__darling__. __Sleep well,__dream__something sweet_)

…

…

…

**A/N: I promise we'll get to the cabin next chapter but the chapter would have been too long if I didn't break it up here and I feel they deserved some time to 'connect' again after the whole Amelia and Alcide debacle.** **Good news for you all, my holiday is nearly up so we'll resume to regular scheduling from next week again ;) I might squeeze in another chapter of Bonfire of the Vanities and From Time Immemorial this week but no promises…**

**MsBuffy, Beta extraordinaire and devoted supporter of this fandom, is issuing a 'Dream Team' challenge where ten fanfic authors are nominated by the readers to rewrite Season 7. I have put the direct link in my profile as this site is censoring every semblance of a web address I type... Leave your suggestion for writers and betas in the comments section I'm not sure what the cut-off date is but it's soon. Results of the ten nominated authors will be up by the 28th. You don't need to sign up with wordpress in order to leave a comment behind.**

**Gyllene is also hosting a HEA contest on her site and she is encouraging new talent to join. Entries are due by August 31st.**

**I got started with Sephrenia's Writing Challenge and it was a really great experience so don't be shy, it's all good fun. Nobody bites, well maybe Eric but I doubt you'd mind. Sephrenia will also be hosting another round of that challenge soon, the banners are already done and I will put in a reminder in an A/N in my other stories when it's fully up.**


	12. Chapter 12 - Feel

"_Eric?" she asked softly as she snuggled her back into his chest._

"_Yes, my voracious goddess." _

_She couldn't help but chuckle with his posturing. "You were right, I was doing it completely wrong."_

"_Glad to be of service," he said as he placed a soft kiss on the crook of her neck. His arm rested over her waist while fingers found each other to intertwine. Content and satiated they held each other in the intimate embrace that comforted them both to near sleep._

"_Goodnight Eric."_

"_Godnatt min älskling. Sov så gott dröm något sött__.__"__ (Good night,__my__darling__. __Sleep well,__dream__something sweet)_

**Chapter 12 – Feel**

The skies were a deep grey outside but there was little that could wipe away at the contented smile on Sookie and Eric's faces. Their sleeping positions had been awkward in the cramped bed but neither one could ever remember feeling this good upon rising. At her stirring Eric's index finger traced and lingered over the dip of her curves on her side.

"What happened to the no touching policy?" she asked with mock indignation at the feel of his tender touch that didn't fail to send shivers down her spine.

"I believe that was last night's offer," he smirked. "From now on all bets are off."

"You're not going to make this easy on me are you?" The smile that seemed etched on her face only set further with that realisation.

"I intend to make it very _hard_ on you," he whispered huskily into the shell of her ear. To his delight it coloured a deep shade of red that flushed further across her cheeks.

Despite her body's feverish response at his attentions Sookie wasn't mentally ready for that quite yet. The thought of the last man she shared herself with had inflicted wounds that took time to heal. That were yet to heal. What was wracking her brain predominantly was not Bill's working of her but rather her own ease at allowing it. That she had submitted to the manipulation without any resistance. She had to get past herself before she could allow that level of physical intimacy again. Sookie trusted Eric intrinsically but her heart was still a fragile organ that hadn't quite recovered yet and in her mind the man that held her so lovingly now only deserved to receive her whole. The way in which he seemed to offer himself to her.

"You just keep that in your pants mister," she warned. "I'll invite Mrs Frisk up myself to unleash the rest of that broom upon you."

He just laughed at her as she wiggled herself from his hold indicating she had no intentions with meeting up with _his_ broom handle this morning. Eric pouted when she finally managed to wrestle free from his hold and moved from under the covers into the chilly morning air.

"I don't think I can look that woman in the eye anymore," Sookie sighed as she was visually scanning the floor for her lost underpants.

"Fuck her and her morality," Eric scoffed while stretching his bare torso for her perusal further encouraging that flush of pink he delighted in. "What happens between us is our business. Besides what we did last night would probably be right up her precious maker's book."

"More like we skirted the extremities of the loopholes," she said knowing the contents of the bible all too well as she continued her search under the bed.

"You really believe everything that book tells you?" Eric asked looking at the ceiling while imagining the many creative ways to painfully poke the disruptive widow with a broomstick herself.

"That book was written thousands of years ago, it hardly applies to today. I just enjoy the spirituality of it all," she replied while crouching down to peer at the underside of the heavy furniture pieces. "I like the idea that my Gran is in a good place and that someone's always watching out for me."

Eric moved his body on his side in order to enjoy the view of Sookie crawling around on all fours in her bra and pyjama pants. "But you have me for that now," he pointed out with a suggestive waggle of his eyebrows. "As I recall you called me a Viking Sex God after."

"Well my omniscient deity perhaps you can locate what I'm looking for," she replied testily correctly assuming he was the culprit responsible for her missing panties.

Eric had indeed deftly pocketed them from the floor the night previous but he wasn't going to give them up so easily. With feigned innocence he proclaimed, "What is that you seek my childe? Spiritual enlightenment, perhaps an out of body experience? As I recall I'm quite good at those."

"Ha ha," she returned anything but amused. "You know exactly what I'm looking for. Hand them over."

"Hand what over?" he said batting his eyelashes appearing as very much the guiltless he was not.

"My panties Eric," she huffed out, her patience with his antics running thin.

"Ah you mean these," Eric smirked at her in triumph as he held them dangling from his index finger. "I believe they are mine though. An appropriate offering to my Divine Being."

"Jerk," she yelped while making an unsuccessful attempt at grabbing them causing her to crash on the narrow bed beside him. She huffed out in annoyance with her failed attempt as the black piece of cloth now hung tauntingly out of her reach. "Damn you and that giant wingspan of yours."

He only continued to laugh at her misery till he noticed a hint of calculation travelling across her irises.

"I'll trade them for a kiss," she offered sweetly as her bottom lip disappeared behind her blunt teeth.

Eric considered it briefly before deciding he'd probably be able to get more out of this bargain if he opened it up for negotiations.

"Tongue?" he asked knowing full well she would probably refuse this. He knew her well enough by now that Sookie wouldn't want their first real kiss to be a trade-off, however, he would take any advantage he could get.

"Just the lips."

"Then I have no interest," he answered all business.

"Just give them back," Sookie whined. "They're gonna be all crusty and gross."

"Maybe I like them that way," he smirked, causing her face to contort to a deep scowl. "I'll give them back under one condition." Sookie cocked her eyebrow as she eyed him suspiciously.

"The next time you wear them I get to take them off."

Sookie was ready to tell him to shove it before she considered that he'd hardly be in the know when she was wearing what underneath her clothes.

"Fine," she accepted laying her hand out. "Hand them over."

His hand clasped over her opened palm with the scrap of lace between them and in recognition of his moment of opportunity Eric pulled her body to his and placed a soft kiss to her lips.

"A kiss was not part of the deal buster!" she yelled out annoyed shoving his chest hard and propelling him off the bed which only further fuelled his hilarity despite the hard landing.

"You're cute when you're mad," Eric taunted as he continued to laugh maniacally.

"Asshole!"

"Yes please," he wheezed out in between laughs.

"Gah! That was not an offer." Sookie stomped away to the bathroom her annoyance expressed in every heavy thud of her feet, knowing full well he was continue to mock her as his chuckles were yet to relent.

Eric got himself up from the floor without a care for the slight pain in his behind, his thoughts already occupied with how best to catalogue the contents of her underwear drawer. He knew that she had not brought a lot of clothes to Sweden so it wouldn't be long before his earmarked pair would be in rotation again.

oOoOoOo

They left the guesthouse relatively unscathed aside from Mrs Frisk's damning looks. Sookie didn't even want to contemplate what the judgemental woman thought of their activities of the night and following morning. With ease they checked themselves in to a new hotel where no scrutiny was laid upon their preferred sleeping arrangements. A bakery with adjoining café offered them a suitable breakfast and they were soon on their way to the cabin.

The access road to the cabin was heavily overgrown and it was clear no one had come here in a very long while. Not wanting to scratch up the rental car they continued on foot. The virgin snow dampened all sounds, the only noise coming from the crunch from beneath their carefully treading feet.

When Sookie spotted a wooden structure once painted in an oxblood red in a clearance ahead she asked, "Is that it?"

Eric studied the satellite images that he had brought and confirmed they had indeed arrived at their destination. After unsuccessfully trying a set of keys found in Halina's room he pulled out a small set of tools and set his gloved hands to work at unlocking the back door. He gave Sookie a set of plastic shoe coverings, which she had dubbed Smurf feet on account of their bright blue colour.

Inside the cabin was empty; they knocked on the walls and searched for any hiding spot, careful not to leave a single trace. The kitchen cabinets were bare as were the built in cupboards. The attic only housed the remnants of a family of deceased mice. None of the floorboards lay loose and after hours of scouring every corner of the cabin they came to the conclusion there really wasn't anything to find here.

With immense disappointment Eric locked up the house leaving it as untouched as they had found it. Sookie was already removing her Smurf feet as Eric sank his body beside her on the veranda. She jumped into a pile of fresh snow and turned round to face him.

"Cheer up Eric," she tried with a bright smile to distract him from the let-down. "We'll go to the beach, freeze our asses of. Who knows maybe I'll cop a feel." The words hardly seemed to register with him and Sookie wondered if perhaps he thought she was going to feel up a cop, with his track record of understanding idioms anything was possible.

He removed his own set of plastic feet coverings, running a tired hand through his hair with the thought of finding no further leads. It wasn't an unfamiliar place for him to be and without fail the memory of his dead family haunted him as he once again felt like he had failed them. Eric was pulled from his stupor when he heard a loud yelp and a string of curse words from Sookie as she fell face down into a giant hole in the ground.

"Sookie!" he yelled full of concern while sprinting to where she appeared to have been swallowed up by the snow.

"I'm fine I think," came her muffled reply. He pulled her out onto solid ground brushing the powdered snow from her face and hair.

"Are you ok?" he asked checking her over for injuries.

"A little sore around the edges, what is that down there?" she asked which was the first time Eric took notice of a set of concrete stairs in the ground. He carefully moved down shoving the snow aside till he found a metal door.

"It's a fallout shelter," he explained. "People were nervous about an invading USSR round here during the cold war."

"Can we get inside?" she asked excitedly curious to what lay beyond.

"It's locked up, my tools won't get us in here. We need the key or more specialised tools," he said as he was trying several keys from the collection of keys they had found in Halina's room. Just like with the cabin none of the keys seemed to be the matching one. The last key he tried finally seemed to catch in the lock but no matter how much force he exerted the door refused to budge and with a frustrating growl the key broke off in the lock. An angry foot struck the door repeatedly before Eric took a deep breath and started scrolling through his phone to contact an associate that specialised in cracking safes. The bars for his reception, however, indicated they had no signal out here so he beckoned Sookie to follow him back to the main road.

"What do we do know?" she asked when he appeared to have calmed down again while starting to shiver a little with the melting snow on her skin. At the sighting he instantly pulled her into his side to share his body heat.

"I'm calling a specialist to fly over as soon as I have some cell reception. We'll go to the beach, freeze our asses of. I get to cop a feel."

"Ha. You should listen a little more accurately," she scolded with a stern face. "It's me who gets to cop a feel and I never specified you would be the recipient. Don't think I forgot about your little stunt this morning."

"Well it better be me or the next time I'll leave you to choke down on that snow when you tumble into another hole."

"Pfff. As if I'm some dainty little thing incapable of digging myself out of a hole. As I recall I gave you quite the chase when you so rudely awoke me in my house," she challenged while sprinting ahead of him.

"Well let's see if you're so successful this time round," Eric called after her as he made his way to chase her.

Sookie was nearly at the car when his giant arms surrounded her body pulling her up and off the ground while she squealed in protest flailing her arms and legs in a desperate attempt to be released from his grasp. Eric pulled her body round and moved her back against a birch tree leaning in fully intent on kissing her.

"Where's your bravery now Ms Stackhouse?" he taunted while locking his eyes firmly on hers.

She made disgruntled noise expelling hot air through her nose and pulled her face to the side denying him the access he sought. He moved to seek out her lips again but they were interrupted by a continuous repetition of chirping noises coming from his phone. He looked down and saw he had thirteen missed calls from Pam. Eric sighed reluctantly as he pulled away from Sookie knowing it was important. Pam hated phones almost as much as she hated making phone calls. She only ever called in an emergency and before he managed to call her back the phone was already ringing.

"Pam."

"Eric," she spoke the relief evident in her voice. "Why haven't you been answering your phone?"

"I'm in the woods, reception was out."

"Finally burying Sookie in the woods then," she teased.

"Pamela," he warned.

"Is she still holding out on you?" the teenager cackled down the other end of the line.

"What's so important?" he asked ignoring her question as they made their way to the car. His opportune moment had been thoroughly lost as Sookie was now clattering her teeth again with the onset of chills. He handed Sookie the car keys so she could enjoy the warmth of the vehicle while he continued his conversation with Pam outside.

"I had a visit from Bill Compton."

"Shit," he replied. The asshole was really making it hard for Eric to detest the surly waste of space any more than he already did. "Are you okay?" Eric asked with concern of Pam's mental state in confronting one half of the two despicable beings that had sought to exploit her.

"Mildly annoyed," she responded dryly not willing to reveal the impact his sudden appearance had caused her. "Talbot was nearby, he's too scared to approach Russell directly. He wants Sookie's things, he knows 'Russell' has them. He's still looking for Lorena's ring."

"Is he still there?"

"No, that's why I'm calling you a gazillion times in a row. I just saw him board a plane to Stockholm while we were waiting for our flight to Mikonos."

"Fuck," Eric grunted.

"So have you?" Pam enquired in her usually cheery tone that masked the reprisal of trauma she had suffered through with Bill's sudden confrontation of her.

"Have I what?" he asked confused at Pam's latest question.

"Fucked her already."

"I'm not discussing this with you," he gritted out.

"I guess not then," she mused. "I thought that hand puppet would have done the trick. You did write the card right?"

"Goodbye Pamela."

"See ya blue balls." With expertise she had hung up the phone before being able to hear him growl out the string of profanities directed her way. After Eric had reached his contact Floki and arranged for him to come down on the next flight, he relayed his conversation with Pam to Sookie. Well the parts about Bill anyhow.

"I really don't want him to find me Eric," she said softly struggling with Bill's encroaching presence in what she considered her safe haven. Her eyes were wide with fear at the prospect. "I need to stay dead to him."

"I know," he spoke soothingly as he drew circles with his thumb on the back of her hand. "I think it would be best you stay here a little longer. Let me find him in Stockholm, have his little confrontation and see him off back to the States. If we wait it out he might follow us to Monaco I can't risk exposing you and I rather not postpone the meeting with the lawyer. I need you there."

"You're not sending him back in a body bag are you?" she winced. He merely chuckled at the thought; it was beginning to sound like a very good idea.

"Only if you ask me to." He pulled her hand to his mouth and placed a soft kiss upon it.

"That's sweet of you but I don't think I'll ever ask that of you," she sighed. "Not unless it's at the threat of your life."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"When will you leave?" Sookie asked, disappointed at the thought of having to separate from him again.

"When we've opened up the fallout shelter," he said with regret. "I'll fly back with Floki tomorrow night."

"Maybe you should go sooner I could work it out with this Floki character," she offered hoping the faster Bill had his little spat with Eric the quicker she could be home with him.

"Floki is a little… Let's just say he's an acquired taste and his English is as good as your Swedish."

"Oh. Alright then," she said with resignation.

"Don't worry älskling," Eric soothed as his thumbs tenderly caressed her cheeks. "Bill's predictable I'll find him easily enough and you'll be flying back as soon as he's boarded his plane."

She stared out the window watching the fresh snow descend down softly around them. "Still want to go to the beach?" she asked determined to occupy her mind with anything but Bill Compton in the short time they still had together.

"Only if I get to be the cop," he grinned at her. It only made her burst into a fit of giggles. She wiped the tears from her eyes and when they opened again a set of penetrating blues stared her down. His lips sought out hers to tenderly explore the soft edges of her mouth and with that the last remnants of the snow on her body melted away.

...

...

...

**A/N: I was a little surprised at your overwhelming enthusiasm of last week's chapter, I have yet to dissect exactly what was so special about it so that I can replicate it in the future. I had nearly scrapped the scene in favour of getting to the cabin quicker but I assume you were all glad I didn't :-) **

**To make up for the lacklustre ending of the TB finale I have been utilising the announcement posts for the stories on my blog to write little quick fixes around the 'Thank You' episode. They're proving pretty popular over there so I decided to add them to this site too, they're collected under the name Thanksgiving Fixin's. Anyhow they're uber short and I'll see how far my imagination stretches but there's a couple rummaging around in my head and they take as long to write as my usual announcement posts so it works for me. Feel free to check them out.**


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